1
as in coaxing
to get (someone) to do something by gentle urging, special attention, or flattery
she cunningly soft-soaped her parents into letting her go on the trip
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in massaging
to praise too much
shrewd voters who know when a politician is trying to soft-soap them
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for soft-soaping
Verb
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But coaxing nematodes is tricky and time-consuming, so Ortega-Jiménez collaborated with Ranjiangshang Ran, a postdoc studying fluid mechanics at Emory University, who ran computer simulations of thousands more jump trajectories.—
Cody Cottier,
Scientific American,
23 Oct. 2025 -
Amidst the pandemic, sitting down at my machine was one reliable way of coaxing order from chaos.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
22 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Simply moisten the skin on the face and massaging the formula in circular motions.—
Beatrice Zocchi,
Vogue,
7 Oct. 2025
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Create some suspense and anticipation by going in slowly, starting with the head and just massaging it slightly with the tip of your tongue.—
Ian Kumamoto,
Them.,
10 Sep. 2025
Verb
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People in the comments responded jubilantly, praising the train for chowing down on another soul.—
Kaitlyn Tiffany,
The Atlantic,
22 Oct. 2025
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When the plug was pulled back in May, Congressman Brian Babin—a Texas Republican and chair of the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee—issued a statement praising the move.—
Jeffrey Kluger,
Time,
22 Oct. 2025
Verb
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One game, especially one so dominated by the defense, certainly isn’t enough to decide whether this is even an issue, but noted QB whisperer O’Connell has to be stroking his chin.—
John Shipley,
Twin Cities,
22 Sep. 2025
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But Ethan’s out there getting loose and stroking it.—
Patrick Saunders,
Denver Post,
20 Sep. 2025
Verb
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After commending leaders for their work, the president spoke of changes being made at the Pentagon, including the decision to rename the Department of Defense to the Department of War.—
Dan Gooding,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Sep. 2025
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Cozens’ former teammate Kyle Okposo took to Cozens right away, even commending the youngster for his leadership skills.—
Julian McKenzie,
New York Times,
24 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Viewer Reactions The TikTok video reached over 110,000 views, nearly 8,000 likes and 2277 comments, with people congratulating the owner on their new home and melting over the dog's precious reaction.—
MSNBC Newsweek,
MSNBC Newsweek,
22 Oct. 2025
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International Game Technology shared the big win in a Facebook post and a few people commented congratulating the winner.—
Helena Wegner,
Sacbee.com,
21 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The sweet gesture had some fans applauding the couple's growth during their time in the public eye.—
Angela Andaloro,
PEOPLE,
14 Oct. 2025
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The two men are surrounded by applauding officials while confetti falls in the background.—
Yamiche Alcindor,
NBC news,
10 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The situation with Adams, who has a less than flattering history with the district, is a bit murkier.—
Marsha Sutton,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
19 Oct. 2025
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Take inspiration from her flattering coat with this faux suede option at Amazon.—
Averi Baudler,
PEOPLE,
18 Oct. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Soft-soaping.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/soft-soaping. Accessed 25 Oct. 2025.
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