as in corrupt
having or showing lowered moral character or standards
within a few short years their rakish son had squandered the family fortune on hard liquor and fast cars
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of rakish
Top 5 Can’t Miss Tequila here is made for sipping—at rakish cantinas, ambitious cocktail bars, and straight from the source on a distillery tour.
—
David Shortell, Travel + Leisure, 28 Sep. 2025
Historical trappings aside, the role marks a departure from the rakish George Wickham or anyone he’s portrayed before.
—Alex Ritman, Variety, 12 Sep. 2025
In addition, Schwartzman portrays Burton, a rakish vampire leading a cloistered life in an Upper West Side penthouse, while Bogosian plays Daniel Molloy, and Kirk is Talamasca agent Raglan James.
—Lynette Rice, Deadline, 4 Sep. 2025
The former is the nerdier, more officious type in his bow tie and sport coat, the latter more rakish, a one-time rabble rouser who’s just happy to have something interesting to do.
—Nina Metz, Chicago Tribune, 28 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for rakish
David Shortell, Travel + Leisure, 28 Sep. 2025
Historical trappings aside, the role marks a departure from the rakish George Wickham or anyone he’s portrayed before.
—Alex Ritman, Variety, 12 Sep. 2025
In addition, Schwartzman portrays Burton, a rakish vampire leading a cloistered life in an Upper West Side penthouse, while Bogosian plays Daniel Molloy, and Kirk is Talamasca agent Raglan James.
—Lynette Rice, Deadline, 4 Sep. 2025
The former is the nerdier, more officious type in his bow tie and sport coat, the latter more rakish, a one-time rabble rouser who’s just happy to have something interesting to do.
—Nina Metz, Chicago Tribune, 28 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for rakish
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rakish
Adjective
-
Transparency International ranks both governments among the most corrupt in the world.—
The Week UK,
TheWeek,
12 Apr. 2026
-
Corruption watchdog Transparency International has ranked Hungary the most corrupt country in the EU.—
Christian Edwards,
CNN Money,
11 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Over that time retirement has been diminished and degraded; Social Security in particular has survived several assassination attempts.—
Trevor Jackson,
The New York Review of Books,
4 Apr. 2026
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But the Florida Supreme Court last month intervened and ordered advanced DNA testing on the last surviving sample from the case, a badly degraded lab slide with biological material from the jeans that Teresa McAbee wore the night she was murdered.—
Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
4 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Often, Marcano had to stand in line for hours with her sick daughter to insure that Amalia was seen by Dilley’s medical team.—
Sarah Stillman,
New Yorker,
13 Apr. 2026
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There have been case reports of people getting very sick from injecting the wrong dose of a peptide or having contaminated peptides.—
Jacqueline Howard,
CNN Money,
13 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Ian Littleworth’s Happy, the dissolute son always looking for an easy way out, seems unsettled not only in his bearings but in his command of the script.—
Theater Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
1 Apr. 2026
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Similarly, Early’s dissolute failson feels less like a self-portrait than like a darkly comic deflection, a gargoyle-ish stand-in for his creator’s anxieties.—
Emily Nussbaum,
New Yorker,
12 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Mahle had a very rough first inning, allowing four hits and issuing two walks, but escaped the frame having only allowed two runs despite the Mets having opportunities to put up a crooked number.—
Justice delos Santos,
Mercury News,
4 Apr. 2026
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Debuting them in a brief, awkward first flight, like a firework that shoots crooked after being in storage too long.—
María Ospina,
The Dial,
31 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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This decadent app is loaded with a pound of crispy bacon mixed into the creamy dip and also sprinkled on top.—
Josh Miller,
Southern Living,
10 Apr. 2026
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Cushy seating is ideal for napping, reading, working from home, or avoiding the news of course, especially when done up in decadent velvet or plush sheepskin.—
Kate McGregor,
Architectural Digest,
9 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Rakish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rakish. Accessed 15 Apr. 2026.
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