as in defeated
to get the better of through cleverness
outmaneuvered his congressional opponent by co-opting his call for change in Washington
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Recent Examples of outmaneuvered
But in the case of the stork, the bird saw the drone and outmaneuvered it.
—
David Hambling, Forbes.com, 26 May 2026
The auteur can now cross another genre off his bucket list with The Samurai and the Prisoner (Kokurojo), a stately and rather stagy historical mystery set during the 16th century, at a time when warring clans fought and outmaneuvered each other for control of the land.
—Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 24 May 2026
Soon, the European LNGs might find themselves being outmaneuvered by others, such as China.
—Ike Brannon, Fortune, 29 Apr. 2026
Beyond Curaçao, regulators have largely fumbled in their efforts to rein in the offshore casino sector, outmaneuvered by nimble operators who exploit the gap between national laws and enforcement power.
—Cecilia D'anastasio, Bloomberg, 27 Feb. 2026
The ferocity of their scenes together, aided by Arias’ devoted yet outmaneuvered Thea, sets the production ablaze with erotic danger.
—Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 25 Feb. 2026
Paramount, which was outmaneuvered by Netflix last December, has received a warmer response from WBD this week and the two media companies are continuing to negotiate.
—Dade Hayes, Deadline, 25 Feb. 2026
Despite being outnumbered and outmaneuvered, Washington maintained order among his demoralized troops.
—Christopher Magra, The Conversation, 10 Feb. 2026
But he was outmaneuvered by a bipartisan groundswell of support from lawmakers and the public, and eventually dropped his opposition.
—Cnn.com Wire Service, Mercury News, 31 Jan. 2026
David Hambling, Forbes.com, 26 May 2026
The auteur can now cross another genre off his bucket list with The Samurai and the Prisoner (Kokurojo), a stately and rather stagy historical mystery set during the 16th century, at a time when warring clans fought and outmaneuvered each other for control of the land.
—Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 24 May 2026
Soon, the European LNGs might find themselves being outmaneuvered by others, such as China.
—Ike Brannon, Fortune, 29 Apr. 2026
Beyond Curaçao, regulators have largely fumbled in their efforts to rein in the offshore casino sector, outmaneuvered by nimble operators who exploit the gap between national laws and enforcement power.
—Cecilia D'anastasio, Bloomberg, 27 Feb. 2026
The ferocity of their scenes together, aided by Arias’ devoted yet outmaneuvered Thea, sets the production ablaze with erotic danger.
—Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 25 Feb. 2026
Paramount, which was outmaneuvered by Netflix last December, has received a warmer response from WBD this week and the two media companies are continuing to negotiate.
—Dade Hayes, Deadline, 25 Feb. 2026
Despite being outnumbered and outmaneuvered, Washington maintained order among his demoralized troops.
—Christopher Magra, The Conversation, 10 Feb. 2026
But he was outmaneuvered by a bipartisan groundswell of support from lawmakers and the public, and eventually dropped his opposition.
—Cnn.com Wire Service, Mercury News, 31 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for outmaneuvered
Verb
-
Schumaker was on the Cardinals team that in 2011 that defeated the Rangers in seven games to win the World Series.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
7 June 2026
-
Georgia defeated Mississippi State 11-9 in 10 innings on Sunday to sweep the Athens Super Regional and clinch the school’s first trip back to the College World Series since 2008.—
Hunter DeLauder,
AJC.com,
7 June 2026
Verb
-
Towering over the town is another, much bigger, Venetian fort, the Palamidhi (named after Palamedes, Nafplio’s legendarily clever local hero, who outwitted Odysseus and, well, didn’t live long enough to regret it).—
Helen Brown,
TheWeek,
30 Apr. 2026
-
Twenty-six years ago, students treated a visit by then-President Bill Clinton as a challenge, and outwitted the Secret Service by secretly rigging a banner to unfurl at an inopportune moment.—
Graeme Wood,
The Atlantic,
26 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
And some of the bees that technically failed the test may have actually outsmarted their contemporaries—by learning to work smarter, not harder.—
Adam Kovac,
Scientific American,
4 June 2026
-
Sunday outsmarted Adam and Hannah with a ruse at Tribal Council.—
Dalton Ross,
Entertainment Weekly,
22 May 2026
Verb
-
The problem is, most people feel deceived when the person in front of them doesn't match the profile.—
Charles Trepany,
USA Today,
9 June 2026
-
Do not be deceived by this seemingly simple question.—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
3 June 2026
Verb
-
Toward the end of the season, Deborah’s grand MSG show is thwarted by her nemesis Bob Lipka (Tony Goldwyn) who bought out all the tickets to the show, leaving her with an empty stadium.—
Alexandra Jhamb Burns,
Condé Nast Traveler,
3 June 2026
-
Kajari still has a strong connection to India and had planned a trip to visit her 91-year-old mother this year, which was thwarted due to the ongoing war with Iran.—
Maddie Connors,
Los Angeles Times,
3 June 2026
Verb
-
Liv Morgan begged for a tag, but she was outfoxed by a blind tag from Rhea Ripley.—
Alfred Konuwa,
Forbes.com,
25 Jan. 2026
-
No doubt remained that I’d been outfoxed.—
Charles Elliott,
Outdoor Life,
21 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
But don’t be fooled, Shoshone is well worth exploring in its own right.—
Meghan Palmer,
Condé Nast Traveler,
7 June 2026
-
Don’t be fooled by its petite silhouette—the bag still offers plenty of room for well beyond your wallet and keys.—
Kyra Surgent,
InStyle,
4 June 2026
Verb
-
The defense argued that the encounters were consensual and that the government had overreached.—
Sarah Rumpf-Whitten,
FOXNews.com,
9 Mar. 2026
-
Democrats and liberals strongly believe Trump has overreached yet again — albeit not in quite such egregious terms — by inveighing against Bad Bunny.—
Niall Stanage,
The Hill,
10 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Outmaneuvered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/outmaneuvered. Accessed 12 Jun. 2026.
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