smoke screen

Definition of smoke screennext

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 Whether there is any fire behind this week’s apparent smoke screen of a meeting, or if Francis is even thinking about resigning is unknown to perhaps but a few of his closest allies, and probably not even them. Jason Horowitz, New York Times, 26 Feb. 2025 Optional features include smoke screens, thermal night-vision and electromagnetic pulse protection. Kurt Knutsson, Cyberguy Report, Fox News, 13 Feb. 2025 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 See All Example Sentences for smoke screen
Recent Examples of Synonyms for smoke screen
Noun
  • The discrepancy in how people view AI has perhaps never been so apparent as this past week, after a viral essay from an AI CEO and investor claimed the tech is coming for any job that involves sitting in front of a computer.
    Lisa Eadicicco, CNN Money, 19 Feb. 2026
  • By providing support for the entire agriculture industry, the commissioner's role is key in helping on these fronts.
    Briauna Brown, CBS News, 18 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • Setting decoys, crafting a blind and getting ready to hunt together, Crowson and I were in our element.
    Scott Haugen, Outdoor Life, 18 Dec. 2025
  • Why don’t small-town police ever close their interrogation-room blinds?
    Emma Specter, Vogue, 16 Dec. 2025
Noun
  • As part of the swindle, McCabe promised to transfer the proceeds from the sale of the yacht to the victim, who according to court filings was a widower who had no family support.
    Sean Emery, Oc Register, 28 Jan. 2026
  • While Yusuf was found guilty of six counts of aiding and abetting theft by swindle (over $35,000) in August by a jury, the decision was overturned by Judge Sarah West in November, according to KARE.
    Adam Sabes, FOXNews.com, 1 Dec. 2025
Noun
  • There is an affordability crisis that is not a hoax.
    Daniel I. Dorfman, Chicago Tribune, 18 Feb. 2026
  • The administration says the regulations hurt business and industry and were rooted in climate change, which Trump regularly calls a hoax.
    Brandon Loomis, AZCentral.com, 12 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • Officials allege Redzepagic — who recently lived in Florida — was involved in a fraud scheme between May 2021 and March 2025.
    Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 13 Feb. 2026
  • French police have detained nine people in relation to a ticketing fraud scheme that may have cost the Louvre €10 million ($12 million).
    News Desk, Artforum, 13 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • Despite his layered duplicity, Jonathan understands and defines himself by courting risk.
    Emily Zemler, Los Angeles Times, 11 Jan. 2026
  • Morgan Freeman’s Thaddeus shows up, still twinkling with duplicity.
    Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 11 Nov. 2025
Noun
  • That said, there are plenty of reasons — none involving any kind of partisan chicanery — that explain why California elections seems to drag on and vote totals shift as ballots are steadily counted.
    Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 11 Feb. 2026
  • But even as skeptics label Strategy and the DAT model as a house of cards built on financial chicanery, others view them as early leaders in an emerging category of crypto banks.
    Jeff John Roberts, Fortune, 3 Dec. 2025
Noun
  • But if so, the group is still adding shows without making any official declarations about an end run just yet.
    Chris Willman, Variety, 11 Feb. 2026
  • 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, 30 Dec. 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 20 Feb. 2026.

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