as in rapacious
living by killing and eating other animals
hawks are predatory and pose a danger to rabbits and other pets
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Recent Examples of predatory
Because right now, Vegas and those predatory betting apps are practically handing out free money.
—
Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 26 May 2026
Coming out of their successful, predatory expansion process, for example, the Golden Knights accumulated six additional draft picks — including two additional first-round picks — making 13 total picks in their inaugural appearance at the draft.
—Thomas Drance, New York Times, 25 May 2026
When grown as lettuce companion plants, sweet alyssum can draw in hoverflies, parasitic wasps, and other predatory insects that keep your lettuce plants and other vegetables naturally pest-free.
—Lauren Landers, Better Homes & Gardens, 22 May 2026
The damsel bug, an insect in the Nabidae family, is a predatory bug.
—Steve Bender, Southern Living, 21 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for predatory
Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 26 May 2026
Coming out of their successful, predatory expansion process, for example, the Golden Knights accumulated six additional draft picks — including two additional first-round picks — making 13 total picks in their inaugural appearance at the draft.
—Thomas Drance, New York Times, 25 May 2026
When grown as lettuce companion plants, sweet alyssum can draw in hoverflies, parasitic wasps, and other predatory insects that keep your lettuce plants and other vegetables naturally pest-free.
—Lauren Landers, Better Homes & Gardens, 22 May 2026
The damsel bug, an insect in the Nabidae family, is a predatory bug.
—Steve Bender, Southern Living, 21 May 2026
See All Example Sentences for predatory
Recent Examples of Synonyms for predatory
Adjective
-
Not the timeless myths of rapacious, demonic women or saintly self-sacrificial mothers.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
5 May 2026
-
Is no one else bothered by the rapacious greed?—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
2 May 2026
Adjective
-
That, in turn, catalyzed the most aggressive Fed rate-hiking cycle ever and a bear market.—
Zev Fima,
CNBC,
1 June 2026
-
Carolina’s penalty kill is extremely aggressive all over the ice.—
Pierre LeBrun,
New York Times,
1 June 2026
Adjective
-
These food-crops also benefit from the work performed by predaceous insects that control populations of crop-eating invertebrates.—
Bruce Beehler,
Baltimore Sun,
17 Aug. 2025
-
Biological control: Parasitic wasps, predaceous beetles and birds assist in lowering sawfly populations.—
Rita Perwich,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
5 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
The front pair of legs is raptorial, meaning they are used for catching and grasping prey.—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
22 Apr. 2026
-
Villegas pushed for the original measure after dangerous speeding and red-light running by raptorial tow drivers ended in a nearly catastrophic crash in his ward that saw a bus that had been hit by a tow truck plow through a storefront.—
Jake Sheridan,
Chicago Tribune,
8 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Kyiv, Ukraine — Russia launched a large-scale deadly attack on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv early Tuesday, damaging residential buildings, authorities said, as part of a broad offensive on targets across Ukraine.—
Helen Regan,
CNN Money,
2 June 2026
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High levels of rotavirus, a potentially deadly virus, have been detected in wastewater in the Boise area, testing shows.—
Hali Smith
June 1,
Idaho Statesman,
1 June 2026
Adjective
-
Claude Lemieux, a four-time Stanley Cup champion whose ferocious, hard-hitting style of play angered opponents and sometimes overshadowed his prodigious skills and ability to deliver in the biggest games, has died after taking his own life, according to authorities.—
Stephen Whyno,
Los Angeles Times,
28 May 2026
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Despite the ferocious domestic rivalries, the Tartan Army is considered among the world’s friendliest football fans, known for singing and mingling instead of brawling (even if only while their national team is playing).—
Laura Dannen Redman,
Condé Nast Traveler,
28 May 2026
Adjective
-
From branches above her is released a sudden shower of ash keys, which flutter downwards, whirring in circles, until their wild flight is put to a stop by meeting the water’s surface, where they are apprehended and whisked away downstream.—
Maggie O’Farrell,
Literary Hub,
2 June 2026
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Keeping in that spirit, small inn-like touches, including breakfast and common spaces (with a pool deck to come in 2025), make this a welcome new gathering place for the area sandwiched between the center of town’s climbing roses and some of the island’s most popular, wild beaches.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
2 June 2026
Adjective
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Their twiggy legs and bony frames exposed in bathing suits, the kids do indeed look extra vulnerable within the film’s savage landscape.—
Beatrice Loayza,
Variety,
25 May 2026
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Sure, sci-fi can be bleak — there's no end to the cosmic horrors and savage alien races that game developers can conjure up — but that almost always comes as a result of humanity's success in space.—
Ian Stokes,
Space.com,
24 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Predatory.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/predatory. Accessed 2 Jun. 2026.
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