sweet-talk 1 of 2

verb

ˈswēt-ˌtȯk How to pronounce sweet-talk (audio)
Definition of sweet-talknext
as in to coax
to get (someone) to do something by gentle urging, special attention, or flattery she can sweet-talk her besotted boyfriend into just about anything

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

sweet talk

2 of 2

noun

as in butter
excessive praise enough of this sweet talk—just give me your honest opinion of my performance

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 sweet-talk
Verb
Instead of sweet-talking your way out of a parking ticket, admit your mistake and pay the fine. — Sarah Vanbuskirk, Parents, 10 Jan. 2026 Hanks takes a detour from his traditional nice guy roles to sleaze it up as the hard-drinking, sweet-talking Wilson, and that alone is worth a watch. — Lia Beck, Entertainment Weekly, 30 Dec. 2025
Noun
From there, according to the report, the sweet talk quickly moves to messaging platforms like WhatsApp, Google Chat or Telegram. — Sunny Nagpaul, Fortune, 23 Apr. 2024 Just in case that gave Reba a leg up, don't let her sweet talk you. — Meghan Overdeep, Southern Living, 28 Feb. 2024 See All Example Sentences for sweet-talk
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sweet-talk
  1. coax
  2. soft soap
  3. praise
  4. flattery
  5. taffy
  6. acclaim
Verb
  • Finding this family and a few others in Europe, the Reaveys coaxed them to come together in 2010.
    — Deepa Fernandes, STAT, 8 Oct. 2026
  • Lynn hadn’t released a solo album since 1988’s Who Was That Stranger when White coaxed her out of early retirement.
    — Walden Green, Pitchfork, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of coax
Noun
  • People should wash any skin that comes into contact with the slurry with water and soft soap, before using a hand cream to avoid dryness and cracking.
    — Lauren Penington, The Denver Post, 2 Sep. 2024
  • Founder and creative director Joy Cho’s lifestyle brand offers whimsical products, spanning bandages to soft soap, as well as regular editorial content online.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 31 Mar. 2021
Definition of soft soap
Noun
  • His praise reached Secretly Group’s director of A&R, Eric Deines, who co-runs a smaller label of his own, Ulyssa, previously most notable for its compilations of songs with almost no listens on streaming services called <1000.
    — Jack Denton, Vulture, 22 Oct. 2026
  • To win effusive praise from special envoy Steve Witkoff and announce a resumption in negotiations, Russian President Vladimir Putin had to do very little.
    — Francesca Ebel, Washington Post, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of praise
Noun
  • Manipulation, escalation, flattery and vindictiveness are not the unavoidable price of sounding natural.
    — Puneet Gaur, Forbes.com, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Tom Cruise's recent effusive praise for Kate Middleton was not just Hollywood flattery, according to royal experts.
    — Ashley Hume , Stephanie Nolasco , Ashley Papa, FOXNews.com, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of flattery
Noun
  • Gelato is churned more slowly than ice cream, giving it a dense, almost taffy-like chewy texture.
    — Anne Ewbank, Sacbee.com, 19 Aug. 2026
  • Adam evoked the image of stretching taffy.
    — Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 18 June 2026
Definition of taffy
Noun
  • The Amish Project debuted to critical acclaim at the New York International Fringe Festival and was developed at the Cherry Lane Theatre before premiering Off Broadway at the Rattlestick Playwrights Theater in 2009.
    — Greg Evans, Deadline, 23 Oct. 2026
  • The show’s soundtrack also garnered critical acclaim, with many of the covers performed by the cast making the Billboard Hot 100.
    — Saba Hamedy, NBC news, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of acclaim

Browse Nearby Words

sweets
sweet-talk
sweet talk
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Sweet-talk.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sweet-talk. Accessed 26 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

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

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of disparate

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

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

'Can' vs. 'May'

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

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

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

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

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
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
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All