1
as in complicating
to make complex or difficult
there's no need to sophisticate something that is beautiful in its simplicity
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in diluting
to alter (something) for the worse with the addition of foreign or lower-grade substances
vanilla extract that has been sophisticated with corn syrup
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of sophisticating
Logistically accelerating techno-economic interactivity crumbles social order in auto-sophisticating machine runaway.
—
James Duesterberg, New Yorker, 18 Feb. 2026
James Duesterberg, New Yorker, 18 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sophisticating
Verb
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Wind and warm weather were complicating firefighting efforts.—
Cecilio Padilla,
CBS News,
10 June 2026
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However, the complicating factor is transportation within the country, as classic Bolivia itineraries often involve long travel days between destinations, many of them by road.—
Bailey Berg,
Condé Nast Traveler,
10 June 2026
Verb
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The Supreme Court asked the lower court to look at its recent ruling in Louisiana, which weakened the Voting Rights Act — a law that previously placed sharp limits on states’ diluting the power of minority voters.—
Kaylah Jackson,
NBC news,
3 June 2026
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In his letter, Markey said using surplus plutonium to produce energy would be significantly more expensive than diluting and disposing of it — the method the federal government was previously using to deal with the waste.—
Ella Nilsen,
CNN Money,
2 June 2026
Verb
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And those farmers are horribly disillusioned by this intensifying deflation and depression that spreads after 1873.—
David Frum,
The Atlantic,
10 June 2026
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The United States has imposed travel bans on more than 100 Nicaraguan officials and relatives, intensifying pressure on President Daniel Ortega and his co-president wife, Rosario Murillo, over a mounting record of human rights abuses.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
9 June 2026
Verb
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There is also more cutting required of bloomed flowers to initiate another flush, and more cleaning up and cutting secondary branches in spring.—
Kait Hanson,
Southern Living,
6 June 2026
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Barr rightly notes that current capital standards were already near the low end of what academic research identifies as optimal; cutting further tips the balance toward fragility, not strength.—
Mayra Rodriguez Valladares,
Forbes.com,
6 June 2026
Verb
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But across Oklahoma, the fluid is spreading uncontrollably belowground, blasting out of old, unplugged wells, polluting land and contaminating drinking water.—
Katie Campbell,
ProPublica,
2 June 2026
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The city had rezoned the area allowing polluting heavy industry to proliferate the community.—
Chadd Scott,
Forbes.com,
1 June 2026
Verb
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Sandwich had to switch pitchers in the eighth inning, and Hamilton-Wenham responded by loading the bases with no outs.—
Tom Mulherin,
Boston Herald,
8 June 2026
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The Mets put pressure on Vasquez by loading the bases with no outs.—
Abbey Mastracco,
New York Daily News,
7 June 2026
Verb
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Like Muir, Lustmord’s Brian Williams creates harrowing, light-devouring music by digitally manipulating a vast library of sounds he’s collected via sampling and field recording.—
Brad Sanders,
Pitchfork,
8 June 2026
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The ever-expanding, replicating, and manipulating series of rooms take scraps and memories of those who pass through it, expanding into something that defies personality or ease.—
Fran Hoepfner,
Vulture,
2 June 2026
Verb
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While the fly is capable of infecting humans and pets, such cases are rare and pose little risk to the broader public, according to experts.—
David Hickey,
NBC news,
4 June 2026
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She is allowed to roam only within a limited tolerance zone to avoid infecting cattle.—
The Conversation,
The Conversation,
4 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Sophisticating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sophisticating. Accessed 13 Jun. 2026.
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