as in oily
overly or insincerely flattering
a typically soapy introduction for the guest speaker at the organization's annual banquet
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Recent Examples of soapy
When Rudd, 55, appeared on Fallon's late night show to promote his new A24 movie Death of a Unicorn on Thursday, March 27, Fallon, 50, noted that Rudd has performed in just about every genre of film, television and theater one could imagine — except for the soapiest of soap operas.
—
Tommy McArdle, People.com, 28 Mar. 2025
There is just cause for the soapier parts: Manet was married, and Morisot wed his brother.
—Julie Belcove, Robb Report, 23 Nov. 2024
The group that seems to have inspired Reid is Fleetwood Mac, which, with its shifting intramural love relationships, sundry drug problems and issues of control — the soapiest of rock’s many operas — was a romance novel/miniseries waiting to happen.
—Robert Lloydtelevision Critic, Los Angeles Times, 2 Mar. 2023
Many non-dishwasher-safe portable blenders instead offer self-cleaning modes, which require you to blend a bit of soapy water before rinsing and drying them.
—Sophie Dodd, Travel + Leisure, 7 Feb. 2023
See All Example Sentences for soapy
Tommy McArdle, People.com, 28 Mar. 2025
There is just cause for the soapier parts: Manet was married, and Morisot wed his brother.
—Julie Belcove, Robb Report, 23 Nov. 2024
The group that seems to have inspired Reid is Fleetwood Mac, which, with its shifting intramural love relationships, sundry drug problems and issues of control — the soapiest of rock’s many operas — was a romance novel/miniseries waiting to happen.
—Robert Lloydtelevision Critic, Los Angeles Times, 2 Mar. 2023
Many non-dishwasher-safe portable blenders instead offer self-cleaning modes, which require you to blend a bit of soapy water before rinsing and drying them.
—Sophie Dodd, Travel + Leisure, 7 Feb. 2023
See All Example Sentences for soapy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for soapy
Adjective
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Cold winds and low humidity sap moisture, leaving even typically oily skin feeling dry and sensitive.—
Conçetta Ciarlo,
Vogue,
28 Jan. 2026
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In my experience, moisturizers for dry skin tend to be unctuously thick, which can trigger breakouts, while those made for oily skin are often too light to make a difference.—
Jacqueline Kilikita,
Refinery29,
22 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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But Pretti’s last seconds were captured from multiple angles, in sickening footage widely distributed on social media and by news organizations.—
Charlie Warzel,
The Atlantic,
25 Jan. 2026
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The sickening lies told about our son by the administration are reprehensible and disgusting.—
WCCO Staff,
CBS News,
24 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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The Social Security Administration sent a gushy, questionable email July 4 to millions of people collecting Social Security benefits and others.—
Susan Tompor,
USA Today,
21 July 2025
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The chatter has only grown in recent days, after Ms. Anderson — who just celebrated a birthday — posted a story on her Instagram account, showing a lavish bouquet of flowers and a gushy card from an admirer.—
Jesse McKinley,
New York Times,
12 Dec. 2024
Adjective
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Some bars are dry on the tongue, others are unctuous.—
Nina Metz,
Chicago Tribune,
23 Jan. 2026
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Field peas, red rice and the best part — oxtail — cooked down, down and down again into a warm, unctuous delight.—
Timothy DePeugh,
Charlotte Observer,
15 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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His widow doesn’t exactly look too broken up; less than a week after his death, Lee spots her snuggling with Dale’s brother Donald, an oleaginous candidate for governor played by Kyle MacLachlan.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
23 Sep. 2025
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One defense, beginning in the late eighteen-hundreds, was flypaper, sheets of which were coated on one side with an oleaginous substance that lured flies, then permanently trapped them.—
David Owen,
The New Yorker,
27 July 2024
Adjective
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Of course, a person making a hagiographic documentary about the production of the show for Netflix probably isn’t the world’s most neutral source.—
Sharon Adarlo,
Futurism,
14 Jan. 2026
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In a way, then, a documentary like Angus Wall’s Being Eddie, a generally amiable and adulatory 90 minutes streaming on Netflix, fails; with its softly hagiographic approach, the director never pushes Eddie Murphy to any place that feels untapped or confrontational, and therefore newsworthy.—
Daniel Fienberg,
HollywoodReporter,
30 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Soapy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/soapy. Accessed 30 Jan. 2026.
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