1
as in negotiated
to plan out usually with subtle skill or care
had to finesse the schedule a bit to fit in another patient that afternoon
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in avoided
to get or keep away from (as a responsibility) through cleverness or trickery
tried to finesse the blame for the foreign policy fiasco, even though he was secretary of state at the time
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of finessed
Back in Miami, Winter finessed his preparation with former Duncan Ensemble dancer Ivette Sotomayor.
—
Guillermo Perez, Miami Herald, 7 Oct. 2025
Cruz finessed his way into not allowing a Red Sox runner to cross the plate, keeping the score tied.
—Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 2 Oct. 2025
Man Ray is one of the few Dada-Surrealist cusp figures who finessed affiliations with both movements without alienating either one.
—Zachary Fine, New Yorker, 23 Sep. 2025
In the other, a talented pitcher in a true breakout year overpowered some hitters and, against others, finessed his way out of pressure spots with men on base.
—Cody Stavenhagen, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2025
The state finessed that by assuming his car was repaired after the robbery.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 19 Aug. 2025
Language was finessed in other ways, too.
—Literary Hub, 13 Aug. 2025
Guillermo Perez, Miami Herald, 7 Oct. 2025
Cruz finessed his way into not allowing a Red Sox runner to cross the plate, keeping the score tied.
—Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 2 Oct. 2025
Man Ray is one of the few Dada-Surrealist cusp figures who finessed affiliations with both movements without alienating either one.
—Zachary Fine, New Yorker, 23 Sep. 2025
In the other, a talented pitcher in a true breakout year overpowered some hitters and, against others, finessed his way out of pressure spots with men on base.
—Cody Stavenhagen, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2025
The state finessed that by assuming his car was repaired after the robbery.
—Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 19 Aug. 2025
Language was finessed in other ways, too.
—Literary Hub, 13 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for finessed
Verb
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The Elma deal was negotiated with David Headley at D H H Literary Agency in association with The Artists Partnership.—
Jesse Whittock,
Deadline,
10 Oct. 2025
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As for Maxwell, the Supreme Court’s decision leaves her 20-year prison sentence intact and closes the door to a legal argument that sought to shield her from prosecution under a 2007 non-prosecution agreement negotiated by Epstein’s attorneys.—
Cameron Schoppa,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Oct. 2025
Verb
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With Tennessee Governor Bill Lee backing the deployment—and faith leaders emphasizing dialogue, restraint, and local input—the city has so far avoided the violent clashes that marked other National Guard operations.—
Robert Alexander,
MSNBC Newsweek,
14 Oct. 2025
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Aspirin should be avoided in children and teens due to the risk of Reye’s syndrome, a rare but serious condition linked to viral infections.—
Daryl Austin,
USA Today,
14 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Farmers exercised a right, a rare sight However, this display, engineered by farmers, suggests a departure from the control elite priests had over the right to worship and build centers for astronomical observation and ritual.—
Maria Mocerino,
Interesting Engineering,
11 Oct. 2025
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Some believe the double movements serve to display dual time zones; others argue the second movement was purposefully engineered to track sidereal time (a timekeeping system used in celestial navigation).—
Rachel Cormack,
Robb Report,
10 Oct. 2025
Verb
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American businesses would pay 22% of the costs, foreign exporters would absorb 18% and 5% would be evaded, according to the Goldman Sachs analysis.—
Elizabeth Schulze,
ABC News,
14 Oct. 2025
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The issue here, contrary to the Administration’s framing, is not that these individuals had previously evaded accountability for allegedly criminal activity.—
Ruth Marcus,
New Yorker,
12 Oct. 2025
Verb
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There’s been no improvement in their real economy despite a stock market that seems manipulated higher, a la 2016.—
Jim Cramer,
CNBC,
12 Oct. 2025
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Its quantum state can be precisely prepared, manipulated and measured by experimenters.—
Zhixin Wang,
The Conversation,
10 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Season 2 sees is set two years after Ethan and his friends escaped the violent grip of gang life and have become spinning stars in the big city.—
Elsa Keslassy,
Variety,
9 Oct. 2025
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As Alba looks up, Messi has escaped from Timor while the centre-backs are occupied with Villa and Alexis Sanchez.—
Anantaajith Raghuraman,
New York Times,
9 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The Grizzlies already have a full roster of 15 players signed for next season, plus two first-round picks coming in, but 10 of those 15 are either expiring contracts or easily could be arranged to be so.—
John Hollinger,
New York Times,
10 Oct. 2025
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As a consequence, manuscripts from the Cotton collection have shelf marks such as Julius D X or Tiberius D III, and lists of such manuscripts are not arranged alphabetically but follow the sequence of Roman emperors.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
10 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Imagine how Voldemort plotted that plan.—
James Brizuela,
MSNBC Newsweek,
8 Oct. 2025
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But while the first four episodes were well-plotted and sure-footed — building up to episode five’s ambitious Alien remix — the final three have been relatively attenuated.—
Noel Murray,
Vulture,
24 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Finessed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/finessed. Accessed 16 Oct. 2025.
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