as in inexperienced
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Recent Examples of would-be
Conservative media figures and Trump allies text clippings, X posts, and videos directly to Harp in an unending stream of would-be influence.
—
Ben Smith, semafor.com, 6 Oct. 2025
The behavior may be fueled by those before them who have achieved what a would-be attacker deems a desirable amount of notoriety.
—Alisha Ebrahimji, CNN Money, 4 Oct. 2025
Attorney General Pam Bondi said the Department of Justice will be appealing the ‘woefully insufficient’ sentence for the would-be assassin of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
—Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy, USA Today, 4 Oct. 2025
The race, much like last year’s party leadership contest that Takaichi initially led but ultimately lost to Shigeru Ishiba, went to a run-off vote between Takaichi and the would-be youngest-ever Prime Minister, 44-year-old Shinjiro Koizumi.
—Chad De Guzman, Time, 4 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for would-be
Ben Smith, semafor.com, 6 Oct. 2025
The behavior may be fueled by those before them who have achieved what a would-be attacker deems a desirable amount of notoriety.
—Alisha Ebrahimji, CNN Money, 4 Oct. 2025
Attorney General Pam Bondi said the Department of Justice will be appealing the ‘woefully insufficient’ sentence for the would-be assassin of Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.
—Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy, USA Today, 4 Oct. 2025
The race, much like last year’s party leadership contest that Takaichi initially led but ultimately lost to Shigeru Ishiba, went to a run-off vote between Takaichi and the would-be youngest-ever Prime Minister, 44-year-old Shinjiro Koizumi.
—Chad De Guzman, Time, 4 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for would-be
Recent Examples of Synonyms for would-be
Adjective
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Injuries have swept through the league, and inexperienced or ill-fitting players have been forced into service as special-teams blockers.—
J.J. Bailey,
New York Times,
12 Oct. 2025
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Scaloni, whose team finished in first place in South American World Cup qualifying, was using Friday’s match, and the Tuesday match against Puerto Rico at Chase Stadium, to integrate some of the younger and inexperienced players on the roster.—
Michelle Kaufman,
Miami Herald,
11 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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China’s sweeping new restrictions, some of which won’t take effect until November, could deal a huge blow to East Asian economies, such as Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, which play critical roles in the global tech and artificial intelligence supply chain, as well as the auto industries.—
John Liu,
CNN Money,
13 Oct. 2025
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And among the primary challenges is learning new defensive principles.—
Roderick Boone,
Charlotte Observer,
13 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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And finding a new commissioner would not only take months but may leave the West with an untried, inexperienced leader.—
Debra Utacia Krol,
AZCentral.com,
19 Sep. 2025
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Since the election, Reform has tried to refashion itself from a protest vote party to one that could govern – untried and inexperienced, but ready to step in if the Labour Party buckles under its own blunders, and the once-mighty Conservatives drift further into political irrelevance.—
Christian Edwards,
CNN Money,
7 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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The anime film follows an amateur sleuth with a penchant for the paranormal, who travels to the deep south to solve a string of murders that have awakened a vengeful Boo Hag spirit seeking justice.—
Kimberly Nordyke,
HollywoodReporter,
7 Oct. 2025
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The whole thing is truly amateur.—
Catherine Lacey,
New Yorker,
5 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Food made by white people is often associated with and critiqued for being bland and unseasoned.—
Marni Rose McFall,
MSNBC Newsweek,
2 Sep. 2025
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Unsalted and unseasoned pasta cooking water can be cooled and used to water plants.—
Mary Marlowe Leverette,
Southern Living,
16 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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A lot of the dialogue existed and the crew had the beginning demos of the songs to work with.—
Joan MacDonald,
Forbes.com,
16 Sep. 2025
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Now, with the injury to Sanders, Sauls to the Dolphins makes perfect sense for the beginning weeks of the season.—
Andrew Wright,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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Unfortunately, the rest of the roster is too big and unskilled, a downstream consequence of buying into the fiction that Davis is a power forward.—
John Hollinger,
New York Times,
10 Oct. 2025
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Lane change issues, road debris or an unskilled driver are all quickly visible in the rear-view mirror with a tap on the accelerator.—
James Raia,
Mercury News,
21 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Digital scanning of human actors, for the purposes of using their likenesses in film and TV projects is another tricky area for the unions given how untested the legal questions are, the attorneys agreed.—
Dade Hayes,
Deadline,
12 Oct. 2025
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Licensing third-party films — particularly those in later pay windows — offers more predictable economics and higher margins than producing new, untested series.—
Alejandro Rojas,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Would-be.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/would-be. Accessed 13 Oct. 2025.
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