1
as in to condescend
to assume or treat with an air of superiority
a director with an unpleasant habit of patronizing even his most gifted actors
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in to endorse
to promote the interests or cause of
a company that loyally patronizes the arts
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in cutting
to assume or treat with an air of superiority
a director with an unpleasant habit of patronizing even his most gifted actors
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in endorsing
to promote the interests or cause of
a company that loyally patronizes the arts
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in condescending
Related Words
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 patronizing
Chicago Tribune, 14 May 2025
And all the polite cheeriness about singlehood—especially from partnered people, in a society still designed for couples—can feel disingenuous and patronizing.
—Faith Hill, The Atlantic, 2 Apr. 2025
Chris Willman, Variety, 8 Sep. 2025
Leaders were supposed to patronize the arts, not participate in them.
—Chris Schembra, Rolling Stone, 8 Sep. 2025
Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 1 Sep. 2025
All were charged with patronizing prositution while eight people were charged with solicitaion of a minor.
—Kirsten Fiscus, Nashville Tennessean, 27 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for patronizing
Verb
There is a pathetic patronizing attempt to walk the misogynistic message back with the reassurance that of course the Tribune Editorial Board supports any choice a person makes about childbirth.
—Chicago Tribune, 14 May 2025
And all the polite cheeriness about singlehood—especially from partnered people, in a society still designed for couples—can feel disingenuous and patronizing.
—Faith Hill, The Atlantic, 2 Apr. 2025
Verb
Liam, the brother who clearly wanted this reunion the most, and wore the inability to re-consummate the brotherly relationship like an open wound, is still given mostly to jokes on stage more than serious statements or anything that patronizes the audience.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 8 Sep. 2025
Leaders were supposed to patronize the arts, not participate in them.
—Chris Schembra, Rolling Stone, 8 Sep. 2025
Adjective
Shop In Uptown Put your plastic to good use by patronizing Uptown’s lovely community of small businesses.
—Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 1 Sep. 2025
All were charged with patronizing prositution while eight people were charged with solicitaion of a minor.
—Kirsten Fiscus, Nashville Tennessean, 27 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for patronizing
Recent Examples of Synonyms for patronizing
Adjective
-
Dismissing these concerns as mere xenophobia is both condescending and factually wrong.—
Letters to the Editor,
Oc Register,
14 Sep. 2025
-
Liu directs heart-expanding, tender performances out of his leads, and the screenplay by Martyna Majok forgoes the maudlin or condescending notes of so many Hollywood depictions of immigration stories.—
Angelica Jade Bastién,
Vulture,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
But as Blitzer points out, the Magnificent 7's domineering influence does not mean the S&P 500 is broken.—
Alex Mayyasi,
NPR,
23 Sep. 2025
-
Managers often grow more assertive (sometimes drifting into domineering).—
Dave Winsborough,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
The five-time first-team All-NBA megastar reinvented himself physically at the start of the summer before looking like the most dominant player in all of Europe this summer.—
Dan Woike,
New York Times,
24 Sep. 2025
-
Taiwan has begun evolving its trade strategy to start wielding its dominant position as a leading supplier of cutting-edge chips as a weapon, Bloomberg reported.—
Ashley Belanger,
ArsTechnica,
24 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Talking about the huddle, one of his teammates just walked off the field inexplicably (Governor Kugler) taking early retirement and two others (Waller and Bowman) are openly disdainful of his play calling.—
Bob Haber,
Forbes.com,
3 Aug. 2025
-
For decades, the Academy seemed to keep Cruise at a vaguely disdainful distance, dismissing him as more of an action figure than a serious ack-TOOR.—
Benjamin Svetkey,
HollywoodReporter,
18 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Patronizing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/patronizing. Accessed 1 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share