finagled

verb

past tense of finagle
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

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of finagled Even top-of-the-food-chain schools like Michigan, UCLA and Washington have recently finagled their balance sheets to cover athletic deficits. — Stewart Mandel, New York Times, 15 July 2026 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for finagled
  1. negotiated
  2. cheated
  3. arranged
  4. manipulated
  5. engineered
Verb
  • Vandermeer is represented by Joe Veltre, senior partner and co-head of the Gersh Agency’s New York office, and attorney Alex Kohner at Yorn Levine, both of whom negotiated the deal.
    — Brent Lang, Variety, 23 July 2026
  • The deal was negotiated by Helen Parker for Universal Pictures Content Group and Avy Eschenasy for Bleecker Street.
    — Denise Petski, Deadline, 23 July 2026
Definition of negotiated
Verb
  • In 2014, Russia was proven to have cheated in the Sochi Olympic Games.
    — Katie Uhlaender OutKick, FOXNews.com, 20 July 2026
  • Although receipt of the letter does not indicate that someone definitively cheated, an unspecified number of cases have been referred to district attorneys for prosecution, the spokesperson said.
    — Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 15 July 2026
Definition of cheated
Verb
  • Common decor items can become easily turn into visual clutter when not arranged with care.
    — Kristin Hohenadel, The Spruce, 18 July 2026
  • These icons—including symbols associated with hygiene, nature, science, sustainability, food, and culture—are arranged to form a large letter U, echoing the original corporate logo while also reflecting the company’s commitment to diversity.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 17 July 2026
Definition of arranged
Verb
  • Investigators say the images were altered versions of real photographs of girls who appeared to be between the ages of 5 and 10 that were manipulated using Grok.
    — Laurie Mermet, Sun Sentinel, 17 July 2026
  • That’s hardly an accident, as lawmakers have increasingly manipulated the election process to suit themselves, rejiggering congressional districts to sideline voters and boost their political parties.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 16 July 2026
Definition of manipulated
Verb
  • Now living in Maui, Feinstein and his team have engineered the world’s first mobile float facility to offer free float sessions to those traumatized by the island’s 2023 wildfires.
    — Tim Neville, Travel + Leisure, 20 July 2026
  • Humanlike robotic dexterity The Mimic Hand M1 is a dexterous robotic hand engineered to match the versatility, strength, and precision of the human hand for industrial automation.
    — Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 20 July 2026
Definition of engineered

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Cite this Entry

“Finagled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/finagled. Accessed 25 Jul. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of finagled for Spanish Speakers

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