as in misleading
telling or containing lies
that tabloid routinely publishes the most moronically mendacious stories about celebrities
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Recent Examples of mendacious
But future generations in China, those not bound by the same baggage as the Xi family, may someday find their voice and want to overturn Mao’s old mendacious order.
—
Foreign Affairs, 20 Oct. 2025
At Comedy Central, Colbert rose to prominence playing a slightly exaggerated version of Bill O’Reilly and other unapologetically mendacious Fox News pundits from the George W. Bush years.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 18 July 2025
The true story reveals both how freedom of speech first came to be conceived of as a mechanism for truth, an antidote to falsehood, and the foundation of all liberty—and that, ironically, this new and powerful theory was itself a deliberately mendacious fiction.
—Fara Dabhoiwala, Harpers Magazine, 4 June 2025
Her unsettling command of the character — who was equal parts sweet, vulnerable, mendacious, and menacing — was one of the highlights of the series.
—Jake Kanter, Deadline, 24 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for mendacious
Foreign Affairs, 20 Oct. 2025
At Comedy Central, Colbert rose to prominence playing a slightly exaggerated version of Bill O’Reilly and other unapologetically mendacious Fox News pundits from the George W. Bush years.
—Alan Sepinwall, Rolling Stone, 18 July 2025
The true story reveals both how freedom of speech first came to be conceived of as a mechanism for truth, an antidote to falsehood, and the foundation of all liberty—and that, ironically, this new and powerful theory was itself a deliberately mendacious fiction.
—Fara Dabhoiwala, Harpers Magazine, 4 June 2025
Her unsettling command of the character — who was equal parts sweet, vulnerable, mendacious, and menacing — was one of the highlights of the series.
—Jake Kanter, Deadline, 24 Dec. 2024
See All Example Sentences for mendacious
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mendacious
Adjective
-
Experts immediately pointed out that Hassett had used a misleading method known as a cubic fit to make the mortality data appear less frightening.—
Rogé Karma,
The Atlantic,
7 Jan. 2026
-
For its misleading omissions, the Times story deserves a flunking grade.—
Orlando Sentinel,
The Orlando Sentinel,
7 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Matthiessen, not without reason, portrays the Bureau as paranoid, dishonest, and in league with corporate interests.—
Maggie Doherty,
New Yorker,
13 Oct. 2025
-
For that incredibly dishonest assessment that actually did a disservice to the country, Obama is held up to widespread praise by Democrats and others, even winning the Nobel Peace Prize in 2009.—
Joe Battenfeld,
Boston Herald,
11 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Quick hits — Canales told reporters that the refs in the Panthers’ loss to the Bucs on Saturday never gave the Panthers the chance to replay a critical down after an erroneous whistle stopped it dead.—
DIAMOND VENCES,
Charlotte Observer,
5 Jan. 2026
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In Wiggins case, the court ruled the trial judge gave erroneous legal instructions to the jury.—
Stephen Swanson,
CBS News,
22 Dec. 2025
Adjective
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The search led her to a nearby house — and into a complicated situation involving several untruthful children and their parents.—
Tereza Shkurtaj,
PEOPLE,
15 Dec. 2025
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Others focussed less on the revelation that our chronically untruthful leader had failed to tell the truth about something, and more on the escalating hate speech about Somali immigrants in Minnesota that the President is now spewing forth on a regular basis.—
Susan B. Glasser,
New Yorker,
11 Dec. 2025
Adjective
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He was found dead lying face up on his hotel bed with no signs of trauma, according to a Monday report from the Orange County Sheriff’s Office in Florida.—
Kenan Draughorne,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Jan. 2022
Adjective
-
The title-winning standard has been lower in recent years; City won it with 86, 93, 89 and 91 points between 2020-21 and 2023-24 and Liverpool with 84 points last season, but some of those totals give a false impression.—
Oliver Kay,
New York Times,
8 Nov. 2025
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The month prior, she was sentenced to one year and nine months in prison for using marijuana while owning a firearm and making false statements about drug use, per the newspaper.—
Christopher Rudolph,
PEOPLE,
8 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Mendacious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mendacious. Accessed 9 Jan. 2026.
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