as in aggressive
attentive to and ready to act on opportunities for personal gain or advancement
The opportunistic salesperson was always on the lookout for potential new customers.
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of opportunistic
Many successors fear that moving beyond their predecessor’s vision will be seen as disrespectful, inauthentic, or even opportunistic—as if change itself were an act of betrayal.
—
Jeetendr Sehdev, Forbes, 13 Mar. 2025
Using one of the worst disasters in our state’s history to score political points while increasing costs across the state is opportunistic at best.
—Peter Kwong, Orange County Register, 10 Mar. 2025
Measles induces an acute immunosuppressed state that can last from two weeks to two months, putting a patient at high risk for opportunistic infections such as influenza and bacterial pneumonia.
—Jessica Winter, The New Yorker, 8 Mar. 2025
The problem goes beyond Nasha's opportunistic desire for an awkward threesome with the two Mickeys.
—Ars Technica, 7 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for opportunistic
Jeetendr Sehdev, Forbes, 13 Mar. 2025
Using one of the worst disasters in our state’s history to score political points while increasing costs across the state is opportunistic at best.
—Peter Kwong, Orange County Register, 10 Mar. 2025
Measles induces an acute immunosuppressed state that can last from two weeks to two months, putting a patient at high risk for opportunistic infections such as influenza and bacterial pneumonia.
—Jessica Winter, The New Yorker, 8 Mar. 2025
The problem goes beyond Nasha's opportunistic desire for an awkward threesome with the two Mickeys.
—Ars Technica, 7 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for opportunistic
Recent Examples of Synonyms for opportunistic
Adjective
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Even though Trump showed signs of softening his aggressive tariff plan with an exemption last week for smartphones, computers and other electronics and floated a temporary exemption for autos, the administration continues to be amadamant more tariffs are coming soon.—
Medora Lee,
USA Today,
17 Apr. 2025
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More likely than an all-out boycott, say attorneys, is a new era in which taxpayers and their accountants push the envelope with aggressive tax-planning techniques that may escape the review of an understaffed agency.—
Robert Frank,
CNBC,
17 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Beyond analyzing troves of data to sift through requirements even the most diligent person might miss, AI can proactively respond to requests with lightning speed—a superhuman ability that might have saved Josef K from the state.—
Michael Ashley,
Forbes.com,
8 Apr. 2025
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Toney is already a diligent student of the game.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
12 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Maybe a less obvious point is that some of these other aspiring autocrats really have to care about audiences outside their own country.—
Isaac Chotiner,
New Yorker,
10 Apr. 2025
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Smith began to invite a number of aspiring influencers to join her daughter in front of the camera.—
Amaris Encinas,
USA Today,
9 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Mir is more ambitious and industrious, having molded himself into the ideal successor to his father’s corporate leadership.—
Angie Han,
The Hollywood Reporter,
5 Mar. 2025
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Now that someone is finally acting, Democrats are pretending the bureaucracy is as industrious and virtuous as Santa’s Workshop and any dollar that gets cut means another kiddie won’t have a Christmas.—
Nolan Finley,
Twin Cities,
4 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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In a defense sentencing memo, Gonzalez’s attorney describes her as a gifted and enterprising young woman who acquired a B.S. degree in civil and environmental engineering and architectural design from Stanford in 2015, and was involved in other entrepreneurial activities beyond her drug business.—
Nate Gartrell,
Mercury News,
19 Apr. 2025
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Von Reden is just one of the enterprising founders on this year’s 30 Under 30 Europe Science & Healthcare list.—
Pamela Jew,
Forbes.com,
15 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Static metrics in a dynamic world are like old maps for new continents.—
Vibhas Ratanjee,
Forbes.com,
17 Apr. 2025
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His mother, her mental health, brothers, that family dynamic.—
H. Alan Scott,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Opportunistic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/opportunistic. Accessed 25 Apr. 2025.
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