as in coaxing
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
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-talking
That’s Frank sweet-talking Miss Terry into coming to West Virginia.
—
Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 18 Jan. 2026
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
Forget the old myths about dressing up or sweet-talking your way to the front.
—Alesandra Dubin, Southern Living, 28 Dec. 2025
When you're isolated, that sweet-talking stranger starts looking pretty appealing.
—Suzanne Blake, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Sep. 2025
Ukraine and its European allies are worried Putin may succeed in sweet-talking Trump into signing up for its one-sided vision for ending the war, leaving Kyiv out in the cold.
—Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News, 12 Aug. 2025
Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 18 Jan. 2026
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
Forget the old myths about dressing up or sweet-talking your way to the front.
—Alesandra Dubin, Southern Living, 28 Dec. 2025
When you're isolated, that sweet-talking stranger starts looking pretty appealing.
—Suzanne Blake, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Sep. 2025
Ukraine and its European allies are worried Putin may succeed in sweet-talking Trump into signing up for its one-sided vision for ending the war, leaving Kyiv out in the cold.
—Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News, 12 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sweet-talking
coaxing
Verb
-
Where Vance seems only to have desired to berate and insult, there was something more urgently coaxing in Rubio’s tone.—
Eliot A. Cohen,
The Atlantic,
17 Feb. 2026
-
Maye has done both without much coaxing this postseason.—
Dieter Kurtenbach,
Mercury News,
5 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Sweet-talking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sweet-talking. Accessed 11 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
