smoke screen

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 smoke screen The concern is that this might be a kind of smoke screen. Lance Eliot, Forbes, 25 Oct. 2024 Any dignified motivations that had once held sway—making art for art’s sake, acting to minimize suffering—became smoke screens to distract others from my selfishness. Manvir Singh, The New Yorker, 9 Sep. 2024 Moscow’s troops have also deployed old-age techniques like smoke screens, anti-drone cages, and more to keep their tanks safe. Abhishek Bhardwaj, Interesting Engineering, 25 June 2024 The celebrated institutions of democracy and transparency appeared to them as nothing more than smoke screens. Susanna Wing, Foreign Affairs, 11 Apr. 2012 See All Example Sentences for smoke screen
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smoke screen
Noun
  • One spread is a black and white photo of the band in early 1967, standing in front of San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge.
    Marco della Cava, USA Today, 14 May 2025
  • Additionally, Sullivan said wait times for developers to get in front of the Zoning Board of Appeals have shortened, as well as the lengths of the meetings themselves, helping to reduce developers’ zoning attorney fees.
    Lizzie Kane, Chicago Tribune, 13 May 2025
Noun
  • After years of Roman shades and bamboo blinds in kitchen windows, curtains are making a stylish comeback.
    Maria Sabella, Better Homes & Gardens, 17 May 2025
  • Hunting blinds are designed to give cats the opportunity to stay hidden while still seeing their surroundings.
    The Washington Post, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • Speaking of bandits, Leland Stanford famously jumpstarted his profits from miners into even greater swindles as a railroad baron, California Governor, and US Senator.
    Matthew Wills, JSTOR Daily, 23 Apr. 2025
  • Then, speaking of swindles, Jeffrey Toobin explains why no one can stop Trump from handing out pardons.
    Air Mail, Air Mail, 12 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • For more on Sherri Papini's kidnapping hoax, subscribe now to PEOPLE, or pick up this week's issue, on newsstands Friday.
    Johnny Dodd, People.com, 22 May 2025
  • For every intentionally funny moment, there seems to be another joke at someone’s expense, such as Jets cornerback Antonio Cromartie needing 40 seconds to (mostly) name his eight kids or Rams defensive end William Hayes insisting dinosaurs are a hoax, but mermaids are real.
    Tim Graham, New York Times, 22 May 2025
Noun
  • Bonnie Cash/Getty Images The Department of Government Efficiency is continuing its attempts to expand its reach beyond executive branch agencies, this time seeking to embed in an independent legislative watchdog that finds waste, fraud and abuse in the government.
    Stephen Fowler, NPR, 16 May 2025
  • UnitedHealth Group is under a Department of Justice criminal probe for possible criminal Medicare fraud related to its Medicare Advantage business, according to the Wall Street Journal.
    Medora Lee, USA Today, 16 May 2025
Noun
  • And some saw duplicity in Holden’s efforts since the councilman had fought so vigorously to restrict liquor licenses in South L.A. after the 1992 riots.
    Jaimie Ding, Los Angeles Times, 8 May 2025
  • The publication, known for its close ties to Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, framed the talks as yet another round of predictable Western duplicity.
    Raja Krishnamoorthi, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • While shocking nonprofit chicanery has found itself in the media spotlight, the story of one West Texas charity deserves to be told and to inspire.
    Jack Fowler, National Review, 7 Apr. 2025
  • The more processes and services a security tool contains, the more opportunities for such chicanery.
    PCMAG, PCMAG, 4 Mar. 2025
Noun
  • This is an end run around regulations that are on the books today.
    Sharon Lerner, ProPublica, 22 Apr. 2025
  • With the aid of Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency team, Trump appears to be attempting an end run that could succeed where his past attempts failed: by simply terminating the consulting contract that the Department of Energy relies on to develop and enforce the rules.
    Peter Elkind, ProPublica, 11 Apr. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Smoke screen.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/smoke%20screen. Accessed 25 May. 2025.

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