as in expanding
to use or develop (something) to get something else that has greater value
He hoped to parlay his basketball skills into a college scholarship.
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
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 parlaying
Doan credits their swift success to his cofounder’s knack for parlaying Vietnam’s thousand-year heritage in textile arts and crafts into propositions with a modern sensibility.
—
Lily Templeton, Footwear News, 29 Jan. 2026
Pressly did, too, parlaying the success as an Astro into a place within franchise lore.
—Chandler Rome, New York Times, 17 Jan. 2026
The cap will restrict the amount wagered on individual pitches before they are delivered – ball, strike and pitch velocity – while banning parlaying each pitch result during a game.
—David Close, CNN Money, 10 Nov. 2025
Raquel is resourceful and has made the best of her situation, parlaying the social capital of being a firefighter’s widow into a lucrative career as a grief influencer and star of Black Veil, a reality series dedicated to helping widows find their own second chances at love.
—Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 24 Oct. 2025
Staub is now reportedly parlaying that performance into a start this Friday against Houston in Colorado’s Big 12 opener.
—Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Butler proved correct then, parlaying it into a max contract, and has trusted his gut on business decisions since, using his power and brazenness to help influence his way out of other situations and into $312 million of career earnings.
—Anthony Slater, The Athletic, 24 Mar. 2025
By parlaying them into the AI realm, this lamentedly is an insidious form of anthropomorphizing AI.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes, 20 Oct. 2024
And one of the answers to that question was parlaying it into a return to directing.
—Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Lily Templeton, Footwear News, 29 Jan. 2026
Pressly did, too, parlaying the success as an Astro into a place within franchise lore.
—Chandler Rome, New York Times, 17 Jan. 2026
The cap will restrict the amount wagered on individual pitches before they are delivered – ball, strike and pitch velocity – while banning parlaying each pitch result during a game.
—David Close, CNN Money, 10 Nov. 2025
Raquel is resourceful and has made the best of her situation, parlaying the social capital of being a firefighter’s widow into a lucrative career as a grief influencer and star of Black Veil, a reality series dedicated to helping widows find their own second chances at love.
—Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 24 Oct. 2025
Staub is now reportedly parlaying that performance into a start this Friday against Houston in Colorado’s Big 12 opener.
—Ryan Morik, FOXNews.com, 9 Sep. 2025
Butler proved correct then, parlaying it into a max contract, and has trusted his gut on business decisions since, using his power and brazenness to help influence his way out of other situations and into $312 million of career earnings.
—Anthony Slater, The Athletic, 24 Mar. 2025
By parlaying them into the AI realm, this lamentedly is an insidious form of anthropomorphizing AI.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes, 20 Oct. 2024
And one of the answers to that question was parlaying it into a return to directing.
—Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for parlaying
Verb
-
Future versions are projected to extend driving range to around 310–372 miles (500–600 kilometers), expanding suitability beyond short-range applications.—
Jijo Malayil,
Interesting Engineering,
6 Feb. 2026
-
Bill Gates named in Epstein files Documents released from the Epstein files indicate that Gates and Epstein met repeatedly after Epstein's prison term to discuss expanding the Microsoft founder's philanthropic efforts.—
Thao Nguyen,
USA Today,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Democrats in Congress are also demanding that immigration agents stop wearing masks as a condition for extending Department of Homeland Security funding.—
Kevin Rector,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Feb. 2026
-
Back then, the district would hire teachers in the first semester and wait to see how students moved around before extending their contracts to a full year.—
Carley Lanich,
IndyStar,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
In Malaysia and Singapore, where markets have reached saturation, operators focused on boosting user activity and revenue generation rather than adding subscribers.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
11 Feb. 2026
-
And boosting, not slashing, anti-hunger programs.—
Laura Washington,
Chicago Tribune,
11 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
That could be a signal that the pace of layoffs is accelerating.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
6 Feb. 2026
-
Alphabet reported fantastic fourth-quarter results on Wednesday, proof that its eye-popping spending on artificial intelligence is accelerating growth across all its businesses.—
,
CNBC,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Now, decoupling supply chains are driving manufacturing growth in the West once more, electric vehicles and home heat pumps need to be plugged in, and the makers of AI’s large language models have ever-increasing power needs.—
Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson,
semafor.com,
6 Feb. 2026
-
The move marks a broader trend from the brand, which has been increasing its visibility to new markets through the world of sports, and, at the moment, none is hotter than that of F1.—
Blake Buettner,
Robb Report,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Preservation was part of the conversation when the two connected, but both were also focused on revitalization and augmenting the structure’s old-world charms with something fresh and modern.—
Lina Lecaro,
Los Angeles Times,
28 Jan. 2026
-
The nearly 14-year transit is augmenting the world and our lives.—
Lisa Stardust,
Refinery29,
23 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
In the future, it could be used for developing high-performance, sustainable materials for everything from aerospace engineering to advanced protective gear.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
6 Feb. 2026
-
This is a developing story and has been updated.—
Anna Chernova,
CNN Money,
6 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Scores of providers sprang up along a corridor stretching west from the San Gabriel Valley through the San Fernando Valley, which now has the highest concentration of hospices in the nation.—
Clara Harter,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Feb. 2026
-
Republicans argue the region’s frustrations reflect years of structural failures under Cooper’s disaster management system, stretching back to earlier storms.—
Samantha-Jo Roth,
The Washington Examiner,
4 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Parlaying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/parlaying. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
