MANIPULATING Synonyms: 101 Similar and Opposite Words

manipulating

verb

present participle of manipulate

as in exploiting

to control or take advantage of by artful, unfair, or insidious means the con man would slyly manipulate the emotions of his marks in order to win their sympathy and trust

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

as in managing

to deal with (something) usually skillfully or efficiently spin doctors manipulating the data to make it seem more favorable to their preferred candidates

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in negotiating

to plan out usually with subtle skill or care manipulated the schedule of presidential primaries so that the choice of the party elders would win the nomination

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of manipulating More ruthless than ever, Tony Baddingham (Tennant) is determined to dismantle his rivals piece-by-piece, weaponizing scandal and manipulating those closest to him to maintain his grip on power. —

Max Goldbart, Deadline, 13 May 2026 Eric Richins' other sister, Katie Richins-Benson, accused Kouri Richins of isolating and manipulating the couple's sons while attempting to take their inheritance. —

N'dea Yancey-Bragg, USA Today, 13 May 2026 One monitor shows guitarist Jonny Greenwood manipulating a strange electronic device exuding tangled wires; another loops footage of a burning building. —

Jonathan Cohen, SPIN, 12 May 2026 Influential voices on the right, opposed to American involvement in Iran, continue to accuse Israel of manipulating America to do its bidding in the Middle East, echoing the age-old antisemitic trope of Jews pulling the strings of global politics. —

Joshua M. Davidson, New York Daily News, 11 May 2026 Unlike previous moon rover-type robots, this new one comes with a pair of robotic arms for handling and manipulating tools. —

Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 10 May 2026 However, manipulating elections or even giving the appearance of fixing an election is what an anti-Democracy person would do. —

Gary Franks, Hartford Courant, 3 May 2026 No one is better at manipulating the system and drawing questionable calls than SGA. —

Jon Root Outkick, FOXNews.com, 1 May 2026 This can involve pretending to be an IT customer support and manipulating an employee at a target company into handing over internal access. —

Michael Kan, PC Magazine, 24 Apr. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for manipulating

Verb

Brunson’s defense and the lack of rim protection from Towns remain weaknesses, but nobody has come close to exploiting them so far.

— Tony Jones, New York Times, 18 May 2026
Governors, regulators and consumer advocates are challenging traditional profit guarantees and rate hikes, arguing monopoly utilities are exploiting a ‘broken’ 20th century model while households struggle with affordability.

— Marc Levy, Los Angeles Times, 17 May 2026