as in accusation
the act of blaming someone for a problem instead of trying to fix or solve it
Engaging in finger-pointing will not help us solve the problem. There was no shortage of finger-pointing among executives after the movie bombed at the box office.
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of finger-pointing
The federal government shutdown, going on for two weeks, has been filled with finger-pointing on each side.
—
Alexandra Skores, CNN Money, 14 Oct. 2025
This comment highlights growing frustration with partisan finger-pointing by emphasizing who holds the majority in government.
—Joshua Sammons, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Oct. 2025
The federal government officially began a partial shutdown with no last-minute drama or shortage of finger-pointing from Democrats and Republicans, each of whom was content to blame the other for the impasse.
—Lorenzino Estrada, AZCentral.com, 1 Oct. 2025
What drew particular ire in the budget decision, and gave way to partisan finger-pointing, was the decision not to fund the Veterans Housing and Recovery Program, leading to the shuttering of two of three housing facilities for homeless veterans in Chippewa Falls and Green Bay.
—Natalie Eilbert, jsonline.com, 24 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for finger-pointing
Alexandra Skores, CNN Money, 14 Oct. 2025
This comment highlights growing frustration with partisan finger-pointing by emphasizing who holds the majority in government.
—Joshua Sammons, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Oct. 2025
The federal government officially began a partial shutdown with no last-minute drama or shortage of finger-pointing from Democrats and Republicans, each of whom was content to blame the other for the impasse.
—Lorenzino Estrada, AZCentral.com, 1 Oct. 2025
What drew particular ire in the budget decision, and gave way to partisan finger-pointing, was the decision not to fund the Veterans Housing and Recovery Program, leading to the shuttering of two of three housing facilities for homeless veterans in Chippewa Falls and Green Bay.
—Natalie Eilbert, jsonline.com, 24 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for finger-pointing
Recent Examples of Synonyms for finger-pointing
Noun
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After accusations of abuse and a lengthy separation from her daughter, Beata died by suicide in January 2017.—
Sophie Dodd,
PEOPLE,
9 Nov. 2025
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Davie has faced a number of major scandals since being named director general in 2020, including the resignation of the BBC’s top new anchor Huw Edwards and accusations of bias from both sides over its coverage of the war in Gaza.—
Jack Dunn,
Variety,
9 Nov. 2025
Noun
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While no blame was assigned, the hearings were open to the public and often gave interested parties, including family members of the person killed, their first opportunity for answers.—
Nate Gartrell,
Mercury News,
8 Nov. 2025
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Both cases are apt to serve as models for how to prevent the kind of school shootings still plaguing the nation and could set legal precedent for who shoulders the blame when children have access to guns and open fire on campus.—
Cindy Von Quednow,
CNN Money,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
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The arrest by federal agents of a day care teacher inside a child care center in northwest Chicago has drawn strong condemnation from local leaders.—
Whitney Wild,
CNN Money,
6 Nov. 2025
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The texts ignited a scandal that drew bipartisan condemnation.—
Mandy Taheri,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Robertas Petraitis, known from Lithuania’s 2026 Oscar contender The Southern Chronicles, stars as Andrius, who is full of grief and guilt after a masked intruder kills his secret lover Deividas (Elvinas Juodkazis), who is Lithuania’s most influential human rights activist.—
Georg Szalai,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Nov. 2025
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Baramulla ultimately transcends its supernatural thriller form to become a parable about guilt, faith, and collective memory.—
Isadora Wandermurem,
Time,
8 Nov. 2025
Noun
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The City Council also asked for more training and improved policy and procedures on handling similar situations and Councilmember Hon Lien walked back the censure process that began earlier this week.—
Luis Melecio-Zambrano,
Mercury News,
25 Oct. 2025
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In doing so, the palace must weigh distancing itself from Andrew with ensuring the blowback from any further censure does not do even more damage to an institution that requires public buy-in.—
Alexander Smith,
NBC news,
21 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Finger-pointing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/finger-pointing. Accessed 18 Nov. 2025.
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