manipulative
Americanadjective
-
influencing or attempting to influence the behavior or emotions of others for one’s own purposes.
a manipulative boss.
-
of or relating to manipulation of objects or parts of the body; serving to manipulate.
spinal manipulative therapy.
noun
Other Word Forms
- manipulatively adverb
Etymology
Origin of manipulative
First recorded in 1815–20; manipulat(e) ( def. ) + -ive ( def. )
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
They also found that the price spikes of the previous two years were caused by refineries going offline without backup supply and “potentially manipulative trading” in those under-supply conditions.
From Los Angeles Times
If I had one-tenth of her manipulative skills, I could have gotten more people to watch this movie.
From Los Angeles Times
Your relative may be controlling or manipulative, but do they deserve to be placed somewhere against their wishes?
From MarketWatch
“Ingrid,” Lorren said sharply, “not being an actual murderer is a low bar. This Rachel girl is manipulative. It’s a good thing you got out.”
From Literature
Imagine if, in “Evita,” audiences members were invited to sing back up on the balcony as Eva Perón belts out “Don’t Cry for Me Argentina,” accompanying her in her last manipulative hurrah.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
