as in deception
the use of clever underhanded actions to achieve an end
that author doesn't go in for literary gamesmanship, so the reader is never led astray by the novel's narrator
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Recent Examples of gamesmanship
Until then, both sides have injected a degree of gamesmanship into the final round of talks, with Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) pledging to hold a vote this week in spite of the Democratic opposition.
—
David Sivak, The Washington Examiner, 6 May 2025
Rather than make kneejerk reactions—especially amid the back-and-forth of trade talks and gamesmanship—companies need the balanced perspective of long-term thinking.
—Harry Kraemer, Forbes.com, 5 May 2025
What followed were weeks of negotiations and political gamesmanship, as Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) dared Democrats to oppose a test vote on the legislation.
—David Sivak, The Washington Examiner, 17 June 2025
For Borchetta to sell her off to Braun was seen as gamesmanship, especially since both men openly strutted about the deal.
—Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 30 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for gamesmanship
David Sivak, The Washington Examiner, 6 May 2025
Rather than make kneejerk reactions—especially amid the back-and-forth of trade talks and gamesmanship—companies need the balanced perspective of long-term thinking.
—Harry Kraemer, Forbes.com, 5 May 2025
What followed were weeks of negotiations and political gamesmanship, as Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD) dared Democrats to oppose a test vote on the legislation.
—David Sivak, The Washington Examiner, 17 June 2025
For Borchetta to sell her off to Braun was seen as gamesmanship, especially since both men openly strutted about the deal.
—Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 30 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for gamesmanship
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gamesmanship
Noun
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The deception here is the notion that these four men are playing against one another, cards or dice or some type of game.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes.com,
13 Aug. 2025
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Clown references imply the fans are in on Swift's schemes, here for the deception and recognize the serious undertones beneath the singer's stage makeup.—
Nicole Fallert,
USA Today,
12 Aug. 2025
Noun
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That phonetic play alone already signals one of the project’s theoretical subterfuges: that of exploring the most advanced conditions of the subject’s annihilation as a foundational precondition for artistic authority.—
Benjamin H. D. Buchloh,
Artforum,
1 June 2025
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An especially Jewish theme in the seventeenth century was not only the necessity but the dignity of subterfuge; to have lived in the shadows of another people’s empire had a nobility of its own, captured in this exquisite and ambivalent image.—
Adam Gopnik,
New Yorker,
19 July 2025
Noun
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Those concerns were laid bare in the discovery process for the defamation case that Dominion Voting Systems took against Fox over false suggestions of fraud and other chicanery aired by guests on the network.—
Niall Stanage,
The Hill,
19 July 2025
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One is inclined to ask how much chicanery, deceit, deception and outright lying one must absorb before ending one’s allegiance to that party.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
2 June 2025
Noun
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Thus far, this prosecution, and a corresponding case against the gang in Sacramento, have been rife with evidence of treachery and violence inside and outside of prison.—
Nate Gartrell,
Mercury News,
31 July 2025
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The six-parter, to debut July 14, follows six groups of friends, and six historical cases of murder and treachery among them.—
Etan Vlessing,
HollywoodReporter,
19 June 2025
Noun
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Michigan had dropped four of its last six games, but mustered enough trickery and belief to keep pace that day and finally, enough gall to try a 2-point conversion that could clinch the game.—
Andrew Callahan,
Boston Herald,
7 Aug. 2025
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In the span of a few quarters, impersonation has graduated from trickery to full-spectrum mimicry.—
Alexander Puutio,
Forbes.com,
31 July 2025
Noun
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From encounters with mermaids, the devil and even Robin Hood to themes of superstition and skulduggery, these short tales are perfect escapism to dip in and out of during your summer vacation.—
Newsweek Staff,
MSNBC Newsweek,
28 May 2025
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This year the skulduggery began early and has been raging for week.—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
12 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Families belong together, not torn apart in secrecy.—
Alia Shoaib,
MSNBC Newsweek,
12 Aug. 2025
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Not every experiment is shrouded in secrecy, however.—
Andrew Paul Jul 30,
Popular Science,
30 July 2025
Noun
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Despite being outnumbered fifty-to-one by the Five Families of the Italian Mafia, the Westies’ legendary brutality and cunning have given them the leverage necessary to share the spoils through a fragile détente.—
Joe Otterson,
Variety,
30 July 2025
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Despite being outnumbered 50-to-1 by the Five Families of the Italian mafia, the Westies’ legendary brutality and cunning have given them the leverage necessary to share the spoils through a fragile détente.—
Nellie Andreeva,
Deadline,
28 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Gamesmanship.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gamesmanship. Accessed 21 Aug. 2025.
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