1
as in negotiated
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in cheated
to use dishonest methods to achieve a goal
she'll finagle until she gets exactly what she wants
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of finagled
In Europe with friends, Reed finagled his way into the Venice Film Festival in 1965 and interviewed Buster Keaton and Jean-Paul Belmondo.
—
Duane Byrge, HollywoodReporter, 12 May 2026
On Sunday, August 10, the JoBros kicked off their Jonas20 tour in New Jersey, with Nick telling the audience that after Joe landed a lead role in the Disney Channel Original Movie, their dad finagled a way for Kevin and Nick to get parts as well.
—Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 11 Aug. 2025
This whole thing seems staged, planned, finagled, massaged, bamboozled, lollygagged, and all sorts of other long, silly-sounding words that may not necessarily apply to this situation.
—Brian Moylan, Vulture, 7 Aug. 2025
Duane Byrge, HollywoodReporter, 12 May 2026
On Sunday, August 10, the JoBros kicked off their Jonas20 tour in New Jersey, with Nick telling the audience that after Joe landed a lead role in the Disney Channel Original Movie, their dad finagled a way for Kevin and Nick to get parts as well.
—Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 11 Aug. 2025
This whole thing seems staged, planned, finagled, massaged, bamboozled, lollygagged, and all sorts of other long, silly-sounding words that may not necessarily apply to this situation.
—Brian Moylan, Vulture, 7 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for finagled
Verb
-
Again, this could be negotiated.—
Chris McKenna,
New York Times,
17 June 2026
-
Other issues to be negotiated in a final deal, according to the framework, are how to monitor implementation and future compliance.—
Deepa Shivaram,
NPR,
17 June 2026
Verb
-
Hilton on Tuesday addressed the president’s unfounded but vociferous claims that Democrats have massively cheated in our recent election.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
11 June 2026
-
People are robbed, assaulted and cheated.—
Armando Salguero OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
8 June 2026
Verb
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There was Asher Durand, master of the winsome glade; John Frederick Kensett, poet of still waters; and, above all, Thomas Cole, the philosopher-king of landscape, with whom an 18-year-old Church arranged to study privately.—
Susan Tallman,
The Atlantic,
13 June 2026
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This meal was arranged like weather.—
Teresa Mull,
FOXNews.com,
13 June 2026
Verb
-
He’s been manipulated to believe that this is what’s necessary by his sister.—
Ronda Racha Penrice,
HollywoodReporter,
15 June 2026
-
The people drawing the lines manipulated the system for partisan advantage.—
Steve Bousquet,
Sun Sentinel,
13 June 2026
Verb
-
The proprietary filtration system is specifically engineered to remove impurities, chlorine, harmful chemicals and heavy metals from your water.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
13 June 2026
-
The hull and superstructure were engineered specifically to support the propulsion system, with designs that reduce energy consumption while improving performance and comfort.—
Rachel Cormack,
Robb Report,
13 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Finagled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/finagled. Accessed 18 Jun. 2026.
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