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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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 predatory The loose age restriction is raising some concerns—namely that the messaging feature could be misused either by teenagers who send inappropriate content to each other, or by predatory users who want access to underage individuals. Elisabeth Sherman, Parents, 28 Aug. 2025 This silvery blue little fish with a jet black stripe eats the bloodsucking parasites on other fish, including predatory species that might otherwise eat them. Ari Daniel, NPR, 25 Aug. 2025 Exclusionary zoning practices further reinforced racial segregation, complemented by other systemic racist mechanisms such as redlining and predatory lending. Ronny Maye, Essence, 21 Aug. 2025 Instead of punishing banks for their predatory practices, Relay condemns soulless corporations for their malfeasance and corruption. Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 21 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for predatory
Recent Examples of Synonyms for predatory
Adjective
  • The man is rapacious — a hungry ghost with a big mouth and an empty stomach.
    David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 31 Aug. 2025
  • The sensationalized trial, every detail passed from rapacious reporters to a bloodthirsty public.
    Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 19 Aug. 2025
Adjective
  • Now and in the future In the early days of the Bowman era, the Oilers appear to be more aggressive in looking for talent.
    Allan Mitchell, New York Times, 14 Sep. 2025
  • First, assume that classification will be litigated if the arrangement is aggressive or if the borrower is thinly capitalized.
    Virginia La Torre Jeker, Forbes.com, 13 Sep. 2025
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
  • 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
  • Damsel bugs are slender and tan-colored and have slightly raptorial front legs.
    Rita Perwich, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 July 2023
Adjective
  • Last week's deadly shooting also heightens concerns of university safety protocols and security at public events.
    Anna Commander, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Sep. 2025
  • The mid-air collision sent both aircraft hurtling into the Potomac River and left no survivors, becoming the deadliest airline crash in the country since 2001.
    Jillian Frankel, PEOPLE, 16 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • And best of all is the way its cocktail of growth factors, peptides, collagen amino acids, and wild yam extract comes together to bring baby cheeks–levels of plumpness to your skin.
    Sophia Panych, Allure, 16 Sep. 2025
  • That cost them a chance to truly challenge the Phillies in the division and thrust them into a dogfight for the NL’s last wild-card spot.
    Jeff Sanders, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • The left is always, at all times and places, a violent phenomenon full of hatred.
    Ross O'Keefe, The Washington Examiner, 11 Sep. 2025
  • Dinah Voyles Pulver, a national correspondent for USA TODAY, has written about hurricanes, tornadoes and violent weather for more than 30 years.
    Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA Today, 11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • Just like that, Denver’s ferocious defensive front had turned a go-ahead scoring opportunity for the Titans into a punt.
    Nick Kosmider, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2025
  • The conflict in Europe was mirrored by a ferocious debate between scientists and Spiritualists, each side fueled by the pain of their own private losses.
    Alice Vernon September 8, Literary Hub, 8 Sep. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Predatory.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/predatory. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.

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