opportunistic
adjective
op·por·tu·nis·tic
ˌä-pər-tü-ˈni-stik 
-tyü-
: taking advantage of opportunities as they arise: such as
a
: exploiting opportunities with little regard to principle (see principle sense 1) or consequences
a politician considered opportunistic
an opportunistic investment
b
: feeding on whatever food is available
opportunistic feeders
opportunistic bears
c
: being or caused by a usually harmless microorganism that can become pathogenic when the host's resistance is impaired
opportunistic infections
opportunistic diseases
Examples of opportunistic in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Both Third Point and D.E. Shaw are not purely activists, but multi-strategy firms that often use activism as an opportunistic tool.
—
Kenneth Squire, CNBC, 12 Apr. 2025
In the era of people using AI to rip off Miyazaki art for cute images of themselves, A Minecraft Movie feels like someone used a generative engine to build an opportunistic non-creation of something that already existed.
—Jordan Crucchiola, Vulture, 4 Apr. 2025
When Trump first took office, in 2017, Thune joined other Republican congressional leaders in what amounted to an opportunistic bargain.
—David D. Kirkpatrick, New Yorker, 31 Mar. 2025
This latest version of GT Sophy does feel different to race against: The AI is opportunistic and aggressive but also provokable into mistakes.
—Jonathan M. Gitlin, ArsTechnica, 28 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for opportunistic
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Kenneth Squire, CNBC, 12 Apr. 2025
In the era of people using AI to rip off Miyazaki art for cute images of themselves, A Minecraft Movie feels like someone used a generative engine to build an opportunistic non-creation of something that already existed.
—Jordan Crucchiola, Vulture, 4 Apr. 2025
When Trump first took office, in 2017, Thune joined other Republican congressional leaders in what amounted to an opportunistic bargain.
—David D. Kirkpatrick, New Yorker, 31 Mar. 2025
This latest version of GT Sophy does feel different to race against: The AI is opportunistic and aggressive but also provokable into mistakes.
—Jonathan M. Gitlin, ArsTechnica, 28 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for opportunistic
Cite this Entry
“Opportunistic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/opportunistic. Accessed 25 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
opportunistic
noun
op·por·tu·nis·tic
-t(y)ü-ˈnis-tik
: taking advantage of opportunities as they arise: as
a
: exploiting opportunities with little regard to principle or consequences
an opportunistic cheater
b
: feeding on whatever food is available
opportunistic feeders
Medical Definition
opportunistic
adjective
op·por·tu·nist·ic
-t(y)ü-ˈnis-tik
1
: of, relating to, or being a microorganism that is usually harmless but can become pathogenic when the host's resistance to disease is impaired
2
: of, relating to, or being an infection or disease caused by an opportunistic organism
Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia and other opportunistic infections that kill AIDS patients—New York Times
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