as in proponents
a person who actively supports or favors a cause
Milton Friedman is usually cited as the leading American protagonist of monetarism
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of protagonists
This squad seems to find it a lot more difficult when they are expected to be the protagonists and dominate the ball against lower-quality opposition.
—
Jay Harris, New York Times, 1 Oct. 2025
In 1934, a year after the book was published, its protagonists embarked on a six-month lecture tour of the United States, where crowds and reporters greeted them at every stop.
—Judith Thurman, New Yorker, 29 Sep. 2025
The Rizzoli and Isles series offers not one, but two strong female protagonists with different skills, talents and challenges, all set in a classic police procedural setting.
—Anders De La Motte, PEOPLE, 28 Sep. 2025
Particular standouts are Joe Pitts as Ramza and Gregg Lowe as Delita, the dual protagonists of the game.
—Hayes Madsen, Rolling Stone, 24 Sep. 2025
The protagonists’ many plotlines, however, do not advance the concepts at stake in Sonia and Sunny.
—Sanjena Sathian, Vulture, 23 Sep. 2025
The director is especially drawn to the way his protagonists chose art as a form of resistance.
—Callum McLennan, Variety, 22 Sep. 2025
As with her previous films, Zhao indulges in natural imagery while evoking the humanity of her protagonists, played by Paul Mescal and an especially good Jessie Buckley.
—Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 20 Sep. 2025
Her work recasts Renaissance and Baroque masterpieces with Black protagonists, reclaiming a space in Western art history that has long excluded the Black experience.
—Yola Robert, Forbes.com, 19 Sep. 2025
Jay Harris, New York Times, 1 Oct. 2025
In 1934, a year after the book was published, its protagonists embarked on a six-month lecture tour of the United States, where crowds and reporters greeted them at every stop.
—Judith Thurman, New Yorker, 29 Sep. 2025
The Rizzoli and Isles series offers not one, but two strong female protagonists with different skills, talents and challenges, all set in a classic police procedural setting.
—Anders De La Motte, PEOPLE, 28 Sep. 2025
Particular standouts are Joe Pitts as Ramza and Gregg Lowe as Delita, the dual protagonists of the game.
—Hayes Madsen, Rolling Stone, 24 Sep. 2025
The protagonists’ many plotlines, however, do not advance the concepts at stake in Sonia and Sunny.
—Sanjena Sathian, Vulture, 23 Sep. 2025
The director is especially drawn to the way his protagonists chose art as a form of resistance.
—Callum McLennan, Variety, 22 Sep. 2025
As with her previous films, Zhao indulges in natural imagery while evoking the humanity of her protagonists, played by Paul Mescal and an especially good Jessie Buckley.
—Shirley Li, The Atlantic, 20 Sep. 2025
Her work recasts Renaissance and Baroque masterpieces with Black protagonists, reclaiming a space in Western art history that has long excluded the Black experience.
—Yola Robert, Forbes.com, 19 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for protagonists
Noun
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Eide and other proponents of expanding hospitalization believe the administration could do even more.—
Nathaniel Meyersohn,
CNN Money,
30 Sep. 2025
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Closure of the bike path to undertake this project has drawn opposition from cycling proponents and West Sacramento Mayor Martha Guerrero.—
Ishani Desai,
Sacbee.com,
28 Sep. 2025
Noun
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The chorus of boos at the final whistle showed what supporters made of it.—
Steve Madeley,
New York Times,
6 Oct. 2025
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Back in the 1920s, even the Soviet leader Vladimir Lenin called on his British supporters to affiliate with the Labour Party instead of fighting it.—
Arash Azizi,
The Atlantic,
4 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Digital rights advocates have also pushed back against a proposal to limit a person to only one social media account per platform, ostensibly as a means to crack down on disinformation.—
Chad de Guzman,
Time,
6 Oct. 2025
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The closure shrouds the 8,000-foot-high plateau and its elk, bison and occasional backcountry skiers in a winter wilderness that some advocates hope to protect and others seek to unlock.—
Brandon Loomis,
AZCentral.com,
5 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Together, O’Neill and Alicia navigate a rabbit hole of deranged folk singers, psychotic cops, boxing promoters, line dancing enthusiasts, and worst of all, podcasters, the truth blurs, bodies stack, and the nature of their search comes into question.—
Andreas Wiseman,
Deadline,
3 Oct. 2025
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American baseball promoters were quick to see the potential of the Japanese market, touring the country as early as 1908.—
Jared Bahir Browsh,
The Conversation,
2 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Protagonists.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/protagonists. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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