insinuates

verb

present tense third-person singular of insinuate
1
as in infiltrates
to introduce in a gradual, secret, or clever way years were needed for the agent to insinuate himself into the terrorist organization

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in implies
to convey an idea indirectly are you insinuating that I won by cheating?

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in inserts
to put among or between others quietly insinuated herself among the concertgoers raptly listening to the piano solo

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 insinuates His question insinuates that Mano Majra’s Muslims had been sheltering criminals. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 24 July 2026 His million Instagram followers think of him as the second coming of Banksy, but plenty more think of him as a peeping Tom, a voyeuristic intruder who insinuates himself into private spaces. — Damon Wise, Deadline, 6 July 2026 Many theories persist as to what happened, whether Tony was killed or whether the cliffhanger insinuates that the mob boss would always live with the possibility of being murdered because of his dangerous profession. — Skyler Trepel, PEOPLE, 10 June 2026 Kyle teases the eventual Meija reveal by calling a huddle onstage with Kyle, Ciara, Carl, Ben and Mia during a break in the action, and insinuates that West got with Amanda for publicity purposes. — Marlow Stern, Variety, 3 June 2026 The proposition has been met with backlash online, as some believe the name insinuates a connection to the president or downplays the importance of the man who donated the land, whom it is named after. — Greta Cross, USA Today, 18 Apr. 2026 Schwartzman, though, is comic gold as an inappropriate inlaw while Sessa brightens things up as a broken-hearted sop who insinuates himself with all the elan of a Lab puppy into the neighbor’s next door household. — Randy Myers, Mercury News, 3 Dec. 2025 In an interview, Piagentini said the poster insinuates violence toward people with opinions that differ. — Killian Baarlaer, Louisville Courier Journal, 12 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for insinuates
  1. infiltrates
  2. implies
  3. inserts
  4. sneaks
  5. indicates
  6. introduces
  7. worms
  8. suggests
Verb
  • The show, which stars Jessica Chastain as an investigator who infiltrates online hate groups to prevent incidents of mad violence.
    — Bethy Squires, Vulture, 20 Sep. 2026
  • This coexistence of the everyday and the extraordinary suggested to me a cinematic way of approaching death – not as a spectacular intrusion, but as a presence that slowly infiltrates daily life.
    — Anna Marie de la Fuente, Variety, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of infiltrates
Verb
  • This implies that even if the Federal Reserve acts again before year end, any movement would more likely represent a limited policy fine tuning grounded in inflation and employment data.
    — , CNBC, 7 Oct. 2026
  • Cutter’s statement implies that similar to season one, season two could also end on a cliffhanger.
    — Jackie Strause, HollywoodReporter, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of implies
Verb
  • What should be a relaxing weekend quickly veers off course as Chuck inserts himself into the group and tests the limits of their patience.
    — Matt Grobar, Deadline, 18 Sep. 2026
  • The Relic chip, of course, is the impetus for the main storyline of Cyberpunk 2077, where V inserts the experimental tech that contains the soul, in effect, of a real person.
    — Paul Tassi, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of inserts
Verb
  • Owen Wilson plays an overprotective dad who sneaks his 13-year-old son (Christian Convery) into the festival.
    — Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 2 Oct. 2026
  • The titular bed trick refers to the literary device, beloved by Shakespeare and by opera buffa, in which a lover sneaks into a bed and, under cover of darkness, is taken for someone else.
    — S. C. Cornell, New Yorker, 29 Sep. 2026
Definition of sneaks
Verb
  • The slow rate at which this is occurring indicates this cosmic vampirism will last for hundreds of thousands to billions of years.
    — Robert Lea, Space.com, 8 Oct. 2026
  • Preliminary information indicates that the explosion occurred near the vessel’s stern deck, resulting in limited damage, a police spokesperson said in a statement.
    — Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of indicates
Verb
  • Yu Chengdong, chairman of Huawei's Terminal BG, introduces the new Stelato G9 vehicle at a press conference on August 20, 2026 in Chengdu, Sichuan Province of China.
    — Matthew Tan,Evelyn Cheng, CNBC, 8 Oct. 2026
  • However, the requirement introduces a direct oversight measure for AI systems controlling potentially dangerous machinery.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of introduces
Verb
  • MomTok got Taylor on the plane and off to star in The Bachelorette, but not before Dakota worms his way in one last time.
    — Joe Reid, Vulture, 13 Mar. 2026
  • Guiteau eventually worms his way into an audience, ostensibly seeking an ambassadorship for his dubious contributions to the campaign but, in reality, requesting a path to greatness.
    — Inkoo Kang, New Yorker, 11 Nov. 2025
Definition of worms
Verb
  • Even so, Ursula is a more complicated proposition than that wholesome image suggests.
    — Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 9 Oct. 2026
  • This suggests how the oceans are interconnected with life on Earth on more levels than one.
    — Martino Carrera, Footwear News, 9 Oct. 2026
Definition of suggests

Browse Nearby Words

insinuated
insinuates
insinuating
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Insinuates.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/insinuates. Accessed 10 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of Luddite

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

The Words of the Week - Oct. 9

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
a cup of tea and a golf ball on tee side by side
Quiz: Sounds Like... Choose the word that sounds like it fits the clue...
See All