temporizer

1
as in chameleon
a person who dexterously and expediently changes or adopts opinions the kind of temporizer who determines his position on a political issue by taking a look at the polls

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2
as in machinator
one who does things only for his own benefit and with little regard for right and wrong a lifelong temporizer, he was for the war as long as it was popular and against it the minute the tide of public opinion went the other way

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for temporizer
Noun
  • This week, the pop star and fashion chameleon has been in Paris promoting her Something Beautiful album.
    Michelle Lee, People.com, 19 June 2025
  • Rango is a chameleon that stumbled into a town called Dirt, in an inventive riff on the western genre that plays equally to children and adults.
    Brian Tallerico, Vulture, 28 July 2025
Noun
  • Here are some methods for scraping good music from the data wasteland, organized in a hierarchy from bottom-feeder basics to more sophisticated and ultimately, uhh, harebrained strategies.
    Kieran Press-Reynolds, Pitchfork, 31 July 2025
  • With the July 31 trade deadline only two weeks beyond the Atlanta All-Star Game, contenders and would-be contenders are eying the rosters of bottom-feeders to fill the few holes on their rosters.
    Dan Schlossberg, Forbes.com, 7 July 2025
Noun
  • Freelance hunters planning to travel to this region should plan on being opportunists.
    Alex Robinson, Outdoor Life, 6 Aug. 2025
  • Like other types of wildlife, such as opossums and skunks, foxes are opportunists and love an easy meal, says Pierce.
    Arricca Elin SanSone, Southern Living, 6 Aug. 2025
Noun
  • Matt Davis, a scientist with the Maine Department of Marine Resources, told WGME that warmer weather from climate change could cause sharks to hang around the area until later in the year than usual.
    Brian Niemietz, New York Daily News, 13 Aug. 2025
  • In one high-profile case, a Chinese vessel was caught inside the Galápagos Marine Reserve with 300 tons of marine life, including 6,000 dead sharks, in 2017.
    Jennifer Raynor, Space.com, 12 Aug. 2025
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.

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Cite this Entry

“Temporizer.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/temporizer. Accessed 24 Aug. 2025.

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