as in moralistic
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Recent Examples of pharisaical
Lists are no substitute for criticism, but those who take them as inimical to criticism are pharisaical.
—
Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 6 Dec. 2022
David and Samuel explore the U.S. energy sector and evaluate what the future holds in an ESG landscape that has done its very best to bring economic incoherence to its pharisaical agenda.
—Andrew Stuttaford, National Review, 16 Jan. 2022
Yet Marlin makes clear that excommunication was never a real threat but rather one that Cuomo shrewdly used to turn himself into a victim of pharisaical bishops.
—Vincent J. Cannato, National Review, 7 Nov. 2020
Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 6 Dec. 2022
David and Samuel explore the U.S. energy sector and evaluate what the future holds in an ESG landscape that has done its very best to bring economic incoherence to its pharisaical agenda.
—Andrew Stuttaford, National Review, 16 Jan. 2022
Yet Marlin makes clear that excommunication was never a real threat but rather one that Cuomo shrewdly used to turn himself into a victim of pharisaical bishops.
—Vincent J. Cannato, National Review, 7 Nov. 2020
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pharisaical
Adjective
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But Europeans cannot simply revert to a moralistic tendency to tell others what to do.—
Josep Borrell Fontelles,
Foreign Affairs,
27 June 2025
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The same moralistic spirit that once defined Minnesota’s politics now fuels passionate polarization.—
David Schultz,
New York Daily News,
17 June 2025
Adjective
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The smug and sanctimonious tenor of their briefing makes that plain.—
Christie D’Zurilla,
Los Angeles Times,
18 June 2025
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In fact, whiny, self-contradictory, and sanctimonious art has achieved a great deal of cultural-political, though not necessarily artistic, success.—
Diedrich Diederichsen,
Artforum,
1 June 2025
Adjective
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Those healthy enough were put through a daily regimen of religious education and physical schooling intended to train them to be pious and obedient.—
Ann Foster,
JSTOR Daily,
9 July 2025
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Moyers’ preacher-like delivery and emphasis on high moral standards in his commentaries led some people to criticize him as being a pious scold.—
Stephen Battaglio,
Los Angeles Times,
27 June 2025
Adjective
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Later Tuesday, Johnson said the violence in Los Angeles is not comparable to the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol, and said Trump's mass pardons of Jan. 6 rioters were not hypocritical.—
Lauren Peller,
ABC News,
10 June 2025
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Against this backdrop, Iran is leveraging social media and state media to frame the U.S. as unstable and hypocritical—part of a broader strategy to weaken its global credibility amid deepening diplomatic tensions.—
Amanda Castro
Shane Croucher
Billal Rahman,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 June 2025
Adjective
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Socially engaged cinema of this kind gets a bad rap these days; it is seen as old and tired or, worse still, superior and self-righteous.—
Stephanie Bunbury,
Deadline,
23 May 2025
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There’s nothing preachy or self-righteous about Frank’s writing.—
Rodger Dean Duncan,
Forbes.com,
21 May 2025
Adjective
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And Velia Martínez, who played the Spanish-speaking, holier-than-thou grandmother set in her ways, was born in Tampa, fluent in English and a longtime actress in Mexico and Cuba.—
Miami Herald Archives,
Miami Herald,
8 July 2025
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Unlike baseball, with some of its holier-than-thou decisions with its Hall of Fame, the Basketball Hall of Fame largely looks at career on-court achievements.—
Ira Winderman,
Sun Sentinel,
18 Feb. 2025
Adjective
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Democrats doubled down on issues that didn’t resonate with male voters and the tactics often used were corny, insincere and offensive.—
Matt Fleming,
Oc Register,
2 June 2025
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That’s not to say the film’s focus on the magic and mysteries male companionship is insincere.—
Jon Blistein,
Rolling Stone,
22 May 2025
Adjective
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Martin studied under and is basically a Temu Alan Grant, while the unctuous Friend oozes with corporate evil.—
Alison Willmore,
Vulture,
30 June 2025
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At times, the display of closeness felt a bit unctuous, as when Musk praised Trump for his gold-heavy interior design makeover of the Oval Office.—
Niall Stanage,
The Hill,
30 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pharisaical.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pharisaical. Accessed 13 Jul. 2025.
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