1
as in ruses
a clever often underhanded means to achieve an end asking me to take her shopping turned out to be a ploy to get me to the surprise party
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in sprees
a time or instance of carefree fun wanted one grand ploy through Europe before settling down and raising a family
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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 ploys After several unsuccessful ploys by his henchmen to save his life — including one that would be attempted post-hanging — Cardinella was down to one last try. —
Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 15 Apr. 2026 There’s the White House and its malicious megaphone of mindlessness; the generative AI advocates and their pushy, pathetic ploys; the Major League Baseball owners and their dedication to self-destruction. —Ben Travers, IndieWire, 20 Feb. 2026 Their poverty, the fruit of Salieri’s malicious ploys, tests the limits of their endurance. —Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 18 Feb. 2026 There are numerous other bold characters getting tangled up in new ploys aimed at giving them a step up in a world that wants to keep them tamped down. —Randy Myers, Mercury News, 14 Jan. 2026 Carr throws the event, Liberty shows up with bagpipers, but both ploys fall flat with Dina. —Tom Smyth, Vulture, 2 Dec. 2025 Workers in the scam compounds are often trafficked from third countries, usually under the pretense of a lucrative job offer, and then forced to scam people online with investment pitches or romantic ploys. —Mithil Aggarwal, NBC news, 23 Oct. 2025 Scammers are improving their ploys to be even more convincing. —Summer Stephan, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 Oct. 2025 As with all Survivor ploys, if the rules don’t explicitly forbid it — heck, get in there and work it to your advantage! —Nick Caruso, TVLine, 24 Sep. 2025
Kori Rumore, Chicago Tribune, 15 Apr. 2026 There’s the White House and its malicious megaphone of mindlessness; the generative AI advocates and their pushy, pathetic ploys; the Major League Baseball owners and their dedication to self-destruction. —Ben Travers, IndieWire, 20 Feb. 2026 Their poverty, the fruit of Salieri’s malicious ploys, tests the limits of their endurance. —Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 18 Feb. 2026 There are numerous other bold characters getting tangled up in new ploys aimed at giving them a step up in a world that wants to keep them tamped down. —Randy Myers, Mercury News, 14 Jan. 2026 Carr throws the event, Liberty shows up with bagpipers, but both ploys fall flat with Dina. —Tom Smyth, Vulture, 2 Dec. 2025 Workers in the scam compounds are often trafficked from third countries, usually under the pretense of a lucrative job offer, and then forced to scam people online with investment pitches or romantic ploys. —Mithil Aggarwal, NBC news, 23 Oct. 2025 Scammers are improving their ploys to be even more convincing. —Summer Stephan, San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 Oct. 2025 As with all Survivor ploys, if the rules don’t explicitly forbid it — heck, get in there and work it to your advantage! —Nick Caruso, TVLine, 24 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ploys
Noun
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Kids will quickly see through her ruses.— Elise Broach, New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2026
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The New York Colored American reported that some offers of short-term work for Black men — moving livestock to or from Kentucky, for example — were ruses that ended with kidnappings.— Equal Justice Initiative, USA Today, 6 Nov. 2025
Noun
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Sam knows the shame Hally has suffered from his father’s drunken sprees.— Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 17 Apr. 2026
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In general, her scoring sprees feel more sustainable and less like streaky bursts of shooting.— Caleb Yum, Austin American Statesman, 26 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Payne hopes to have similar production in the fall, especially with TCU incorporating more outside zone run schemes.— Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 20 Apr. 2026
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Socialists like to spend money — lots of other people’s money, of course — and Mamdani has been hampered by the fiscal stewards of Albany who, thankfully for New York City, aren’t likely to allow his more egregious schemes that would only drive away more of the city’s crucial affluent class.— The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 19 Apr. 2026
Noun
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At the start of the year, China removed a three-decade-old tax exemption on contraceptive drugs and devices.— Sean Nevin, NBC news, 24 Apr. 2026
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The suit alleged City Creek failed to reposition her every two hours in bed or her wheelchair, which is the clinical standard for people at risk of bedsores, and to promptly order devices to protect her skin.— Jordan Rau, Miami Herald, 23 Apr. 2026
Noun
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From fusion tapas restaurants to a minor league baseball team, Dunedin has plenty of delightful tricks up its sleeve.— Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 20 Apr. 2026
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On a recent thread on the r/GLP1microdosing subreddit, women shared their tips and tricks for hiding medication from their partners.— Rebecca Flint Marx, SELF, 20 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Ploys.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.grautoblog.com/thesaurus/ploys. Accessed 26 Apr. 2026.
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