1
as in greedy
having a huge appetite
nothing livens things up like a whole team of rapacious basketball players descending upon the pizza parlor
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in predatory
living by killing and eating other animals
rapacious mammals, such as coyotes, foxes, and bobcats
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in mercenary
having or marked by an eager and often selfish desire especially for material possessions
rapacious plunderers who despoiled the tombs in the ancient pyramids
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 rapacious
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
Black people are depicted as rapists and cannibals, Jews as rapacious and controlling, and white people who believe in a multicultural society as race traitors who also deserve to die.
—James Shapiro, The Atlantic, 18 July 2025
But the cynicism that has always thrummed underneath his high-concept comedies — the dehumanizing algorithms, the rapacious finance system — is more prominent in this slim, potent novel.
—Mark Athitakis, Los Angeles Times, 3 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for rapacious
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
Black people are depicted as rapists and cannibals, Jews as rapacious and controlling, and white people who believe in a multicultural society as race traitors who also deserve to die.
—James Shapiro, The Atlantic, 18 July 2025
But the cynicism that has always thrummed underneath his high-concept comedies — the dehumanizing algorithms, the rapacious finance system — is more prominent in this slim, potent novel.
—Mark Athitakis, Los Angeles Times, 3 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for rapacious
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rapacious
Adjective
-
But Septime Webre’s choreography is supposed to have the air of wild and sometimes frenzied social dancing, of Charlestons and Fox Trots and Black Bottoms, of indulging the glorious excesses of the 1920s before the greedier side of the American Dream comes crashing down a few years later.—
David Lyman,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
30 Oct. 2025
-
Which is to say, this isn’t the story of a greedy, materialistic man who suffers a crisis of conscience while trying to pry a priceless treasure away from an uneducated hick who doesn’t know any better.—
David Ehrlich,
IndieWire,
29 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Even the climax of the film, when Bella confronts Edward about his vampire identity in the misty Washington forest, loses its dramatic edge thanks to Edward's emphatic rebuke of his predatory nature.—
Edward Segarra,
USA Today,
31 Oct. 2025
-
Why no mumblings of atonement for the predatory nature of capitalism itself, its core values and standard operating procedures no different from those of the beasts in the field?—
Henry Freedland,
Harpers Magazine,
24 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Governments have turned to the Kremlin’s private mercenary army, the Africa Corps — formerly known as the Wagner Group — for protection.—
Paul Tilsley,
FOXNews.com,
19 Oct. 2025
-
The protagonist’s diabolical plot is fuelled by an unmanageable tangle of emotions, including raging jealousy, mercenary self-interest, and resentment of Eileen’s professional and intellectual accomplishments, which sparks shame at her own cosseted frivolity.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
17 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
The problem with this concept is the fact that the region around ravenous black holes should emit strongly in the X-ray region of the electromagnetic spectrum, but that doesn't seem to be the case for little red dots or for BiRD.—
Robert Lea,
Space.com,
4 Nov. 2025
-
Other photos in this series have odd and unsettling stories behind them, including the one that captured an apparently ravenous witch.—
Josh Honeycutt,
Outdoor Life,
30 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
What Netanyahu wants is not this peace deal or avaricious annexations, but to stay in power.—
Yair Rosenberg,
The Atlantic,
21 Oct. 2025
-
But is better than the alternative of admitting to an avaricious Moscow that Ukraine must accept some kind of defeat.—
Nick Paton Walsh,
CNN Money,
24 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Legacy OEMs joined in on the action, as well, with debuts from McLaren and Rolls-Royce drawing crowds eager to get up close and personal or snap a selfie with the latest and greatest.—
Michael Van Runkle,
Robb Report,
4 Nov. 2025
-
While Williams has always kept her love life private, fans are eager to know more about the man who captured her heart.—
Elizabeth Ayoola,
Essence,
4 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Building out that platform and benefiting as more teams are plugged into it has meant Leonsis and MSE have stayed acquisitive.—
Ian Thomas,
CNBC,
18 Sep. 2025
-
Retail e-commerce penetration had surged during the pandemic, which brought a rush of acquisitive capital into the space.—
Lien De Pau,
Forbes.com,
31 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Rapacious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rapacious. Accessed 8 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share