sugarcoat

verb

Definition of sugarcoatnext
as in to excuse
to talk about or describe (something) in a way that makes it seem more pleasant or acceptable than it is textbooks that sugarcoat history She has very strong opinions, and she doesn't try to sugarcoat them.

Related Words

Relevance

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 sugarcoat There is no sugarcoating the reality. — Justice Delos Santos, Mercury News, 31 May 2026 Then, sugarcoating was the reflexive response. — Susan Page, USA Today, 29 May 2026 There’s no way to sugarcoat it. — Corey Masisak, Denver Post, 25 May 2026 Morgan didn’t sugarcoat the harder parts either. — Kimberly Wilson, Essence, 10 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for sugarcoat
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sugarcoat
  1. explain
  2. justify
  3. excuse
  4. whitewash
  5. rationalize
  6. explain away
Verb
  • Rasa is also using AI to draft the statements that get sent to court, explaining to the judge why the expungement should be approved.
    — Andrea Hsu, NPR, 3 Aug. 2026
  • Malloy crisscrossed the state during his first few months in office, holding 17 town meetings to explain the fiscal ticking time bomb represented by unfunded pension obligations.
    — Keith M. Phaneuf, Hartford Courant, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of explain
Verb
  • Israel’s defense minister has justified the destruction as a strategic decision to remove any threat of Hezbollah.
    — Ava Bambuck, CNN Money, 6 Aug. 2026
  • However, with virtually the same design and battery life as its predecessor, the Galaxy Watch 9 doesn't offer enough meaningful improvements to justify its higher starting price.
    — Andrew Gebhart, PC Magazine, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of justify
Verb
  • For me, the larger question is not whether artistic behavior excuses transgression, but how to hold artistic achievement and ethical accountability together without allowing one to erase the other.
    — Andy Battaglia, ARTnews.com, 3 Aug. 2026
  • But fears of future intimidation do not excuse preemptive capitulation.
    — Ivan Oransky, STAT, 31 July 2026
Definition of excuse
Verb
  • Japan’s Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum has been accused of whitewashing the country’s wartime past.
    — George Nelson, ARTnews.com, 29 July 2026
  • Critics have warned that the new panels replacing the ones exhibited since 2010 whitewash the history of slavery.
    — Corey Williams, Los Angeles Times, 15 July 2026
Definition of whitewash
Verb
  • But repeatedly rationalizing troubling information and warning signs is different.
    — Kathy Caprino, Forbes.com, 29 July 2026
  • It’s used to rationalize the Electoral College because should Wyoming have as much electoral power as Illinois?
    — Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 17 July 2026
Definition of rationalize
Verb
  • How these experiences may be misclassified The symptoms that women in their late 30s, 40s, and early 50s commonly experience are, individually, easy to explain away.
    — Matt Emma, USA Today, 3 Aug. 2026
  • However, these people don't need prediction markets to concoct some conspiracy theory to explain away why their candidate lost.
    — Bobby Allyn, NPR, 27 July 2026
Definition of explain away

Browse Nearby Words

suffusing
sugarcoat
sugarcoated
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Sugarcoat.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sugarcoat. Accessed 11 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Aug. 7

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
fridge-magnet-letters
Drop a Letter Quiz August 2026 Drop a letter from a word to make a totally diffe...
See All