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
But eye-watering secondary market prices are an example of how desirable concerts have become a hot commodity for predatory re-sellers.
—
Los Angeles Times, 10 Apr. 2026
The programs that once felt like partnerships are now predatory relationships designed to extract maximum value while delivering minimum benefits.
—Christopher Elliott, USA Today, 5 Apr. 2026
Grass lines in 8 to 15 feet of water make a perfect location for ambushing their prey and hiding from other predatory fish like muskies.
—Derek Horner, Outdoor Life, 2 Apr. 2026
Protesters who were part of that movement questioned why banks received governmental bailouts while households struggling with predatory student debt did not.
—Celina Su, The Conversation, 1 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for predatory
Los Angeles Times, 10 Apr. 2026
The programs that once felt like partnerships are now predatory relationships designed to extract maximum value while delivering minimum benefits.
—Christopher Elliott, USA Today, 5 Apr. 2026
Grass lines in 8 to 15 feet of water make a perfect location for ambushing their prey and hiding from other predatory fish like muskies.
—Derek Horner, Outdoor Life, 2 Apr. 2026
Protesters who were part of that movement questioned why banks received governmental bailouts while households struggling with predatory student debt did not.
—Celina Su, The Conversation, 1 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for predatory
Recent Examples of Synonyms for predatory
Adjective
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Those orcas were well within their rights to take their revenge, carrying out Mother Nature’s punishment against humanity for its rapacious depravity.—
Angel Saunders,
PEOPLE,
1 May 2026
-
The notion that Related is a rapacious developer being handed a giveaway ignores the history.—
Peter Peyser,
New York Daily News,
26 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Buxton knows the plan — a fighting retreat that saves ownership money but still gives the team the chance to regroup and compete for a division title with strong starting pitching and an aggressive, small-ball approach from a young, athletic lineup.—
John Shipley,
Twin Cities,
4 May 2026
-
Iran signaled an aggressive response to this latest bid to break its stranglehold over the strait, which has left global shipping at an effective standstill and sent energy prices spiraling.—
Yuliya Talmazan,
NBC news,
4 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
-
Hantavirus is more common in Asia and Europe, where the strains that circulate are less deadly, with a case fatality rate that ranges from less than 1% to 15%.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
5 May 2026
-
Germany has been rocked by a string of deadly car ramming attacks in recent years.—
Billy Stockwell,
CNN Money,
4 May 2026
Adjective
-
Behind a ferocious defense and an offense that couldn’t miss, the Knicks led by 25 points after one quarter, by as many as 51 points in the first half, and by as many as 61 points after halftime.—
Peter Sblendorio,
New York Daily News,
1 May 2026
-
Mo Chara and Móglaí Bap have always been ferocious rappers, two goliaths spitting bilingual bars over gritty electronica with the couplet-completing precision of Run the Jewels.—
Dean Van Nguyen,
Pitchfork,
30 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Astronomers have always suspected these baby galaxies were busy, but new glimpses from the James Webb Space Telescope are showing them to be even brighter and larger than our wildest dreams.—
Paul Sutter,
Space.com,
4 May 2026
-
The reality is, this has been their approach for far too long; it is not been exposed to the public, and a forensic audit of all increases, and all spending that comes from each of those additional taxes will expose corruption beyond anyone’s wildest imagination.—
Kaitlyn Schallhorn,
Oc Register,
4 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 5 May. 2026.
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