as in deceptive
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Recent Examples of manipulative
The podcast aesthetic—casual, long-winded, sometimes profane—directly opposes, perhaps not coincidentally, the sterility and bizarre right-this-minute quality of cable news, on which everything seems incomplete and therefore manipulative, and yet somehow endless.
—
Jay Caspian Kang, New Yorker, 24 Mar. 2026
And there are those in law enforcement and the Department of Corrections who’ve described her as manipulative.
—Stephanie Nolasco, FOXNews.com, 21 Mar. 2026
When a mysterious beast washes ashore, the villagers abandon him, and he is left with only a manipulative outcast by his side.
—Liz Shackleton, Deadline, 17 Mar. 2026
This epidemic of often-manipulative messaging is also, in some ways, shrinking the candidates themselves.
—David Weigel, semafor.com, 16 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for manipulative
Jay Caspian Kang, New Yorker, 24 Mar. 2026
And there are those in law enforcement and the Department of Corrections who’ve described her as manipulative.
—Stephanie Nolasco, FOXNews.com, 21 Mar. 2026
When a mysterious beast washes ashore, the villagers abandon him, and he is left with only a manipulative outcast by his side.
—Liz Shackleton, Deadline, 17 Mar. 2026
This epidemic of often-manipulative messaging is also, in some ways, shrinking the candidates themselves.
—David Weigel, semafor.com, 16 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for manipulative
Recent Examples of Synonyms for manipulative
Adjective
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In the class action suit, Rodriguez requested a jury trial, damages, restitution and injunctive relief to prevent Hollister from continuing to use its alleged deceptive pricing practices.—
Jennifer Bringle,
Footwear News,
6 Apr. 2026
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Samuel Nana Opoku, a resident of Fairfax County, Virginia, is facing charges of money laundering, felony theft by taking, five counts of identity fraud, and initiation of deceptive commercial email.—
Dan Raby,
CBS News,
2 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Both the criticism and self-flagellation imply that the act of claiming another person’s words can render these words deceitful, even if the words have been paid for and the content is true.—
Emily Hodgson Anderson,
The Conversation,
25 Mar. 2026
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That downturn cost shareholders who sold their stock during the uncertainty caused by what the lawsuit alleges was Musk’s deceitful behavior.—
Staff,
Austin American Statesman,
20 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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To expel a Democrat and leave a Republican alone would strike many voters as hypocritical.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
31 Mar. 2026
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Foulkes' campaign has labeled McKee's attacks as desperate and hypocritical, noting his own associations with Home Depot.—
Katherine Gregg,
The Providence Journal,
30 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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The show portrays devious, cocaine-huffing young bankers climbing the ranks of global finance, and Yasmin—or Yas, for short—has cut the least noble path of all.—
Spencer Kornhaber,
The Atlantic,
2 Mar. 2026
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Or, there are a few things audiences shouldn’t even think about during one, let alone find the time to worry about — especially not if our seemingly devious criminals aren’t worrying about them, either.—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
18 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Past friends and former associates described him to me as an exceptionally cunning con man, a consummate charmer, and a womanizer.—
Nate Freeman,
Vanity Fair,
3 Apr. 2026
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Starring Charlize Theron, Taron Egerton, and Eric Bana, the film was shot on location in the Australian wilderness and features Theron as a grieving woman on a solo adventure who becomes the target of a cunning killer (Egerton) in a twisted game of cat-and-mouse.—
Abid Rahman,
HollywoodReporter,
1 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Debuting them in a brief, awkward first flight, like a firework that shoots crooked after being in storage too long.—
María Ospina,
The Dial,
31 Mar. 2026
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Tolkan also played Napoleon and his look-alike in Woody Allen’s Love and Death (1975) and was the crooked accountant known as Numbers who works for Big Boy Caprice (Al Pacino) in Warren Beatty’s Dick Tracy (1990).—
Mike Barnes,
HollywoodReporter,
27 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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The Celtics weren’t able to create any distance from their pesky hosts until Brown hit a pair of 3-pointers late in the half — one off a nifty underhanded pass from Neemias Queta, the other set up by a Scheierman offensive rebound.—
Zack Cox,
Boston Herald,
21 Mar. 2026
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In California, the law prevents incumbents from pulling off the kind of underhanded stunt that Garcia and Daines managed.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
18 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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After taking scheming actions, the model sometimes doubles down on its deception when asked follow-up questions.—
Harper’s Magazine,
Harpers Magazine,
19 Sep. 2025
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What initially seems to be a satire about corporate downsizing evolves into a kind of scheming caper romp, before downshifting into something that feels more horror-comedy structured.—
Joe Reid,
Vulture,
16 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Manipulative.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/manipulative. Accessed 9 Apr. 2026.
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