Synonyms of manipulating

manipulating

verb

present participle of manipulate

1

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

• exploiting
• deceiving
• playing (upon)
• maneuvering
• tricking
• plotting
• fooling
• jockeying
• engineering
• duping
• devising
• deluding
• hoodwinking
• scheming
• arranging
• intriguing
• defrauding
• bluffing
• cheating
• gulling
• swindling
• conning
• masterminding
• kidding
• finagling
• fleecing
• hoaxing
• contriving
• finessing
• chiseling
• snowing
• taking in
• beguiling
• machinating
• cozening
• shanghaiing
• hustling

2

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

• managing
• handling
• addressing
• treating
• negotiating
• taking
• playing
• maneuvering
• hacking
• swinging
• coping (with)
• fielding
• grappling (with)
• controlling
• contending (with)
• pulling
• coming to grips with
• regulating
• jockeying
• having a grip on
• guiding
• engineering
• carrying out
• directing
• steering
• finessing
• getting off
• carrying off
• commanding
• responding (to)
• reacting (to)
• micromanaging
• bringing off
• running

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• fumbling
• mishandling
• bungling
• botching
• messing (up)
• muffing
• goofing (up)
• scamping
• lousing up
• foozling

3

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

Synonyms & Similar Words

• negotiating
• arranging
• plotting
• managing
• engineering
• maneuvering
• contriving
• framing
• masterminding
• finessing
• wangling
• machinating
• finagling
• concluding
• scheming
• conducting
• concocting
• handling
• conniving
• directing
• concerting
• working out
• hammering out
• intriguing
• hatching
• compassing
• brewing
• angling (for)
• commanding
• cooking (up)
• running
• gerrymandering
• quarterbacking
• captaining

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• blowing
• mangling
• fumbling
• mishandling
• butchering
• bungling
• botching
• messing (up)
• gumming (up)
• flubbing
• bobbling
• muffing
• lousing up

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of manipulating

The experiment, therefore, suggests that empty space itself could become a new tool for manipulating quantum matter, much like other efforts to push the limits of superconducting materials. — Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 22 Aug. 2026

Herrouet was arrested in November and charged with grand theft and running a scheme to defraud by employing relatives and manipulating payroll expenses, according to the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office. — Linda Robertson, Miami Herald, 22 Aug. 2026

Artificial intelligence has enabled the rapid rise of such tools, capable of digitally manipulating photos with little effort. — Megan Cerullo, CBS News, 20 Aug. 2026

Instead of a surgeon physically manipulating every instrument by hand, the doctor could control a robotic system that translates those decisions into extremely precise movements. — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 19 Aug. 2026

Instead of replacing long-term bonds with long-term bonds, Treasury is expected to replace them with short-term bills, manipulating the yield curve. — Steve Liesman,matt Peterson, CNBC, 19 Aug. 2026

They are accused of falsifying overtime claims, forging approvals from supervisors and manipulating official records. — Ben Conarck, Washington Post, 18 Aug. 2026

The answer to this question is not found, according to the framework of Protocol Art, in sussing out the nature of the machine but rather the mind manipulating it. — Shanti Escalante-De Mattei, ARTnews.com, 17 Aug. 2026

In recent years, totalizing ideologies such as communism, fascism, and Islamism have found dedicated audiences on social media, and the proliferation of demagogues manipulating people for malign ends is an ever-present worry. — James Kirchick, The Atlantic, 13 Aug. 2026