1
as in negotiating
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 cheating
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 finagling
Other songs are less terminally online and more reminiscent of finagling fake IDs and getting blitzed on the LES.
—
Lydia Wei, Pitchfork, 20 Feb. 2026
Lydia Wei, Pitchfork, 20 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for finagling
Verb
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It would soon be revealed that Michael was simultaneously busy negotiating an alternative deal with Anthropic’s chief rival, OpenAI.—
Gideon Lewis-Kraus,
New Yorker,
14 Mar. 2026
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Herrick is credited with building up the Academy's library into one of the world's primary film research centers, as well as negotiating the award show's first television contract — and a major step toward financial independence — in 1953.—
Rachel Treisman,
NPR,
13 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The incident came a couple of weeks after the sport was in the headlines during the Olympics as the Canadian team was accused of cheating.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
15 Mar. 2026
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Billionaire Ronald Burkle is suing political power-broker Darius Anderson, accusing his former protégé and friend of cheating him out of millions of dollars.—
Clara Harter,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Mar. 2026
Verb
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One of her alternate personalities — the cold and calculating Samantha — joins law enforcement to pursue her father’s killers, while other identities begin to surface with their own motives, seducing and manipulating powerful men as Sylvia’s search for justice veers into vengeance.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
18 Mar. 2026
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Adrian Maclean, 52, of Lisbon was arrested twice in connection with an embezzlement scheme police say involved manipulating records in the Hebron Tax Collector’s Office, according to Connecticut State Police.—
Justin Muszynski,
Hartford Courant,
17 Mar. 2026
Verb
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From his first run with the Academy Awards arranging team in 2008, Walden was hooked; the job seamlessly blended his favorite parts about film scoring and classical composing.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
13 Mar. 2026
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The Paley Center for Media is arranging the pieces for its Paley Honors Spring Gala program.—
Chris Gardner,
HollywoodReporter,
11 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Machado tossed a scoreless eighth after maneuvering around a pair of two-out singles.—
Jordan McPherson,
Miami Herald,
15 Mar. 2026
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Homing torpedoes and heat-seeking missiles alter their trajectory to intercept maneuvering targets.—
Jon R. Lindsay,
The Conversation,
11 Mar. 2026
Verb
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But, ultimately, Sullivan decided to pursue a career in engineering late in high school.—
Madeline Coleman,
New York Times,
8 Mar. 2026
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EnzymeThreads is engineering high-performance enzymes designed to break down PET into its original monomers.—
Alexandra Harrell,
Sourcing Journal,
5 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Swig Swig is plotting its newest location in Charlotte, though the timeline for the opening is unclear.—
Tanasia Kenney,
Charlotte Observer,
13 Mar. 2026
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Already, lawmakers are plotting how to point the finger at Trump on the campaign trail.—
Eleanor Mueller,
semafor.com,
13 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Finagling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/finagling. Accessed 19 Mar. 2026.
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