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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
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

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for temporizer
Noun
  • So to call the film chameleonic rather undersells the gonzo thematic transformations Laxe engineers — chameleons, after all, merely change color.
    Jessica Kiang, Variety, 15 May 2025
  • Feliz plays Samantha Reed who has been trained by her father to be a weapons expert, skilled martial artist and true chameleon all while hiding a mysterious past.
    Denise Petski, Deadline, 4 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • Hall, a 33-year-old former MVP who’d spent 1 1/2 seasons of his dwindling prime killing time on an NHL bottom-feeder, did in May exactly what Carolina acquired him to do back in January.
    Sean Gentille, New York Times, 13 May 2025
  • And a lot of them are like the rig shark — smaller bottom-feeders, eaten by larger sharks and humans alike.
    Julie Depenbrock, NPR, 3 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • He has been shown, as countless others have been, that to a political opportunist, no friend is indispensable and nothing is safe.
    Sun Sentinel Editorial Board, Sun Sentinel, 5 June 2025
  • For example, we’ve been approached by opportunists offering to file simple forms that require no negotiation — for a 10% cut.
    Robert Kaplan, Mercury News, 3 June 2025
Noun
  • One of them estimated the shark was about 10 feet long.
    Jillian Frankel, People.com, 3 June 2025
  • The shark gnawed on his surfboard, but Heller was unharmed.
    Joe Edwards, MSNBC Newsweek, 2 June 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.

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Temporizer.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/temporizer. Accessed 11 Jun. 2025.

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!