as in to ignore
to dismiss as of little importance
for too long the school just winked at the young athletes' hooliganism, dismissing it as a case of "boys being boys"
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wink (at)
Verb
-
This framing effectively provides a rationale for ignoring officers’ commands during field encounters.—
Christina Buttons,
Washington Post,
3 Feb. 2026 -
Fedorov, the new defense minister, acknowledges the scale of the problem, telling the Ukrainian parliament some 2 million people are ignoring their call-up papers, while 200,000 others have deserted.—
Andrew Carey,
CNN Money,
3 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
In the end, Wirz was their only major conviction, because southern outrage and northern demands to forgive and forget brought an end to the legal effort.—
Drew Gilpin Faust,
The Atlantic,
8 Feb. 2026
-
With so much attention going, understandably, to Bad Bunny's halftime concert during Super Bowl LX, you'd be forgiven for thinking no one else was performing.—
Kathleen Walsh,
Glamour,
8 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
On the first day of school during Black History Month, Ruth Duran assigned her sixth graders in the Bronx the story of a key figure overlooked in most history books.—
Cayla Bamberger,
New York Daily News,
8 Feb. 2026
-
It’s grown on the lush farm of Flamingo Estate — an idyllic hillside orchard overlooking Los Angeles.—
Gretta Monahan,
Boston Herald,
8 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Whitwam explains that Catalina mule deer hunting was traditionally reserved for island residents and their guests, or hunters who were willing to book with a local guide.—
Kris Millgate,
Outdoor Life,
6 Feb. 2026
-
Patriots wide receiver Stefon Diggs argued Brady’s role as a sports network broadcaster — not just a Patriots icon — explains his neutral stance.—
Chantz Martin,
FOXNews.com,
6 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Meanwhile, Tesla has worked to secure millions in state and local funding for its Semi, while many in the trucking industry question whether the vehicle’s uneven development timeline justifies such heavy public investment.—
Tony Briscoe,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Feb. 2026
-
Those documents will reveal the grounds the federal government used to justify the FBI’s seizure of 2020 election records last month.—
AJ Willingham,
AJC.com,
9 Feb. 2026
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.
Cite this Entry
“Wink (at).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wink%20%28at%29. Accessed 11 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
