1
as in ruses
a clever often underhanded means to achieve an end
asking me to take her shopping turned out to be a ploy to get me to the surprise party
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in sprees
a time or instance of carefree fun
wanted one grand ploy through Europe before settling down and raising a family
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of ploys
No tactical ploys or tweaks could save him.
—
Jordan Campbell, New York Times, 25 May 2026
While court orders that block counterfeiters can help to safeguard intellectual property, sometimes those counterfeiters simply turn to other aliases and cybersquatting ploys to continue their activities.
—Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 14 May 2026
After several unsuccessful ploys by his henchmen to save his life — including one that would be attempted post-hanging — Cardinella was down to one last try.
—Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 15 Apr. 2026
There’s the White House and its malicious megaphone of mindlessness; the generative AI advocates and their pushy, pathetic ploys; the Major League Baseball owners and their dedication to self-destruction.
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 20 Feb. 2026
Their poverty, the fruit of Salieri’s malicious ploys, tests the limits of their endurance.
—Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 18 Feb. 2026
There are numerous other bold characters getting tangled up in new ploys aimed at giving them a step up in a world that wants to keep them tamped down.
—Randy Myers, Mercury News, 14 Jan. 2026
Carr throws the event, Liberty shows up with bagpipers, but both ploys fall flat with Dina.
—Tom Smyth, Vulture, 2 Dec. 2025
Workers in the scam compounds are often trafficked from third countries, usually under the pretense of a lucrative job offer, and then forced to scam people online with investment pitches or romantic ploys.
—Mithil Aggarwal, NBC news, 23 Oct. 2025
Jordan Campbell, New York Times, 25 May 2026
While court orders that block counterfeiters can help to safeguard intellectual property, sometimes those counterfeiters simply turn to other aliases and cybersquatting ploys to continue their activities.
—Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 14 May 2026
After several unsuccessful ploys by his henchmen to save his life — including one that would be attempted post-hanging — Cardinella was down to one last try.
—Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 15 Apr. 2026
There’s the White House and its malicious megaphone of mindlessness; the generative AI advocates and their pushy, pathetic ploys; the Major League Baseball owners and their dedication to self-destruction.
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 20 Feb. 2026
Their poverty, the fruit of Salieri’s malicious ploys, tests the limits of their endurance.
—Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 18 Feb. 2026
There are numerous other bold characters getting tangled up in new ploys aimed at giving them a step up in a world that wants to keep them tamped down.
—Randy Myers, Mercury News, 14 Jan. 2026
Carr throws the event, Liberty shows up with bagpipers, but both ploys fall flat with Dina.
—Tom Smyth, Vulture, 2 Dec. 2025
Workers in the scam compounds are often trafficked from third countries, usually under the pretense of a lucrative job offer, and then forced to scam people online with investment pitches or romantic ploys.
—Mithil Aggarwal, NBC news, 23 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ploys
Noun
-
They are accused of using several ruses to force their way into people’s homes, assaulting unsuspecting residents and holding them hostage for their own money, and demanding access to their crypto accounts.—
Andy Rose,
CNN Money,
14 May 2026
-
Kids will quickly see through her ruses.—
Elise Broach,
New Yorker,
20 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Buying sprees of outlets led to owners who became highly leveraged and less able to invest in programming, which put the squeeze on suppliers such as CBS News Radio.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
22 May 2026
-
This is also the kind of transit that inspires spontaneous wellness kicks, organization sprees or maybe even a standing desk purchase.—
Valerie Mesa,
PEOPLE,
15 May 2026
Noun
-
Their schemes are said to be nearly identical.—
Elliott Teaford,
Oc Register,
27 May 2026
-
After the Biden administration recognized that inflation was eating away at public approval, the antitrust regulators tried to uncover price-fixing schemes in industries like gas stations, shipping, and groceries, with little success.—
Jonathan Chait,
The Atlantic,
26 May 2026
Noun
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Looking for more travel-friendly tech devices for your journey?—
Aly Walansky,
Travel + Leisure,
29 May 2026
-
Nearby homes were evacuated during the investigation, and the bomb squad hauled out boxes of what were described as consumer-grade pyrotechnic devices, enough to fill more than three box trucks, according to investigators at the scene.—
City News Service,
Daily News,
28 May 2026
Noun
-
As a long-time shopper, Aly knows there are tricks to scoring the best deals.—
Celia Shatzman,
Forbes.com,
26 May 2026
-
The robot training center's primary focus will be on gathering all the data possible, across a diverse collection of robots, in an effort to be able to fine-tune methods to teach new bots old tricks.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
25 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Ploys.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ploys. Accessed 30 May. 2026.
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