1
as in to negotiate
to plan out usually with subtle skill or care
let me look at my schedule and see if I can't finagle a visit to the museum
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2
as in to cheat
to use dishonest methods to achieve a goal
she'll finagle until she gets exactly what she wants
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of finagle
Can’t finagle a flight to Hawaii right now?
—
John Metcalfe, Mercury News, 6 Aug. 2025
Having finagled an invite from Prater’s steely assistant, Charley (Uma Thurman, sporting an asymmetrical bob and a disgusted glower), Dexter infiltrates the group looking for villains to bring to his kill table.
—EW.com, 10 July 2025
This, too: though praising FIFA for anything requires pinching one’s nose, the poohbahs were right to finagle Inter Miami into the tournament.
—Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 June 2025
Plus, there are only so many shenanigans F1 will tolerate from one driver trying to finagle the race outcome.
—Sahil Kapur, NBC news, 17 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for finagle
John Metcalfe, Mercury News, 6 Aug. 2025
Having finagled an invite from Prater’s steely assistant, Charley (Uma Thurman, sporting an asymmetrical bob and a disgusted glower), Dexter infiltrates the group looking for villains to bring to his kill table.
—EW.com, 10 July 2025
This, too: though praising FIFA for anything requires pinching one’s nose, the poohbahs were right to finagle Inter Miami into the tournament.
—Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 29 June 2025
Plus, there are only so many shenanigans F1 will tolerate from one driver trying to finagle the race outcome.
—Sahil Kapur, NBC news, 17 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for finagle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for finagle
Verb
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The deal was negotiated by Piantedosi and Manager of Acquisitions and Sales Rachel White on behalf of Vertical and by CAA Media Finance on behalf of the filmmakers.—
Andreas Wiseman,
Deadline,
25 Sep. 2025
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The Obama Administration secretly negotiated the Iran nuclear deal without consulting GCC capitals.—
Firas Maksad,
Time,
25 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Job interviews are getting complicated in the age of AI, as ways to cheat the process proliferate.—
Reed Albergotti,
semafor.com,
26 Sep. 2025
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But in the premiere, his relentless enthusiasm and chipper choice to cheat won me over.—
Jason P. Frank,
Vulture,
25 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The continual delays have led to many embarrassing moments, the most recent coming last Tuesday, when, after Barca officials told the media the Camp Nou was ready, the Barcelona city council arranged a press conference of their own in reply.—
Pol Ballús,
New York Times,
1 Oct. 2025
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For the Rolliefest finale, Hess and his team of organizers arranged a farewell cocktail party in the winter garden of the new private residences at the Waldorf Astoria, fresh off an almost-eight-year, multibillion dollar restoration.—
Victoria Gomelsky,
Robb Report,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Julie asked Jimmy Heagerty about where things stood with Mickey Lee, and Jimmy said Morgan did a great job manipulating Mickey into sending him home.—
David Wysong,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
29 Sep. 2025
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With its flexible solvers, Newton allows developers to simulate complex, real-world tasks ranging from walking on snow and gravel to manipulating fragile objects like cups and fruit.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
29 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Finagle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/finagle. Accessed 2 Oct. 2025.
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