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
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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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First class will see suites arranged in a 1-1-1 configuration across the cabin, each featuring an 80-inch flat bed and separate armchair, plus a full-length wardrobe.—
Jake McGowan,
CNN Money,
19 June 2026
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Written, composed, and arranged by K-indie singer-songwriter and producer Hyun-sang Ha, the pop-rock ballad was created with his friend, Minhyuk, in mind.—
Laura Sirikul,
Forbes.com,
19 June 2026
Verb
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He’s been manipulated to believe that this is what’s necessary by his sister.—
Ronda Racha Penrice,
HollywoodReporter,
15 June 2026
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The people drawing the lines manipulated the system for partisan advantage.—
Steve Bousquet,
Sun Sentinel,
13 June 2026
Verb
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The killings were engineered to terrify the remaining Poles into fleeing westward, so extensive documentation was spread of the accompanying torture and mutilation.—
Brady Knox,
The Washington Examiner,
20 June 2026
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How has the company engineered this success?—
Scotty Reiss,
Forbes.com,
20 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Finagled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/finagled. Accessed 22 Jun. 2026.
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