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
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Recent Examples of predatory
Rather than focusing on the conspiracy theories Jones espoused, the new InfoWars will build its comedic base off a spoof of the old site’s predatory snake oil rackets.
—
Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 29 Apr. 2026
The fragrant flowers attract pollinating bees and predatory insects that suppress pests in the vegetable garden.
—Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 28 Apr. 2026
Villa may have been the hunted for much of 2026, but those competitors have lacked predatory instinct.
—Jacob Tanswell, New York Times, 26 Apr. 2026
Federal prosecutors charged multiple people linked to scam compounds in Cambodia and Myanmar, part of a broader effort by the United States to combat cybercrime, fraud, and predatory schemes against Americans.
—Claire Carter, The Washington Examiner, 23 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for predatory
Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 29 Apr. 2026
The fragrant flowers attract pollinating bees and predatory insects that suppress pests in the vegetable garden.
—Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 28 Apr. 2026
Villa may have been the hunted for much of 2026, but those competitors have lacked predatory instinct.
—Jacob Tanswell, New York Times, 26 Apr. 2026
Federal prosecutors charged multiple people linked to scam compounds in Cambodia and Myanmar, part of a broader effort by the United States to combat cybercrime, fraud, and predatory schemes against Americans.
—Claire Carter, The Washington Examiner, 23 Apr. 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
-
The Boston Red Sox could be aggressive, and have the prospects to swing a deal.—
Ian Miller OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
11 May 2026
-
In 1981, reggae artist Bob Marley died in a Miami hospital at age 36 after battling an aggressive skin cancer.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
11 May 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
-
At least 18 people are currently under observation at two of the nation’s top medical centers after being potentially exposed to hantavirus aboard the MV Hondius, the cruise ship at the center of the deadly outbreak.—
Natalie Neysa Alund,
USA Today,
12 May 2026
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Fifteen people jailed at Rikers died that year, the beginning of an uptick toward the deadliest annual figures in almost a decade.—
Molly Fischer,
New Yorker,
11 May 2026
Adjective
-
The old saying that film does not lie is true here in the opening episode, as viewers get a glimpse at Williams’ basketball skills as a shooter and leaping ability as a ferocious dunker.—
Joe Davidson
May 7,
Sacbee.com,
7 May 2026
-
In July 2023, daredevil physicists outfitted a high-altitude NASA plane with gamma-ray detectors and flew it straight over the core of some of the most ferocious storms on the planet — tropical storms in the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central America.—
Quanta Magazine,
Quanta Magazine,
6 May 2026
Adjective
-
But Fredrik Berselius’s cooking is too weird and wild to fit the bounds of one creed.—
Ligaya Mishan,
New York Times,
11 May 2026
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Yet, having said all of that, the bottom line is the Rays went into the weekend with a 7½-game lead in the AL wild-card race and ended the weekend in first place in the AL East.—
John Romano,
The Orlando Sentinel,
11 May 2026
Adjective
-
This time playing an underling rather than a boss, Hoskins gave one of the best performances of his career in what remains a high point for Jordan as well, a lyrical and poignant yet savage film noir filled with regret, rage, and unrequited love.—
Jim Hemphill,
IndieWire,
20 Apr. 2026
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The famed African American journalist investigated lynchings across the South and wrote about the savage incidents that the white press had already explained away.—
Case Thorp,
The Orlando Sentinel,
5 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Predatory.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/predatory. Accessed 12 May. 2026.
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