pandering

American  

[pan-der-ing] / ˈpæn dər ɪŋ /

noun

1. the act of catering to or profiting from the weaknesses, vices, or unreasonable desires of others.

   Pandering and fear-mongering are the main ingredients of his appeal to anxious voters.

2. the act or practice of furnishing clients for a prostitute or supplying persons for illicit sex acts.

   Human trafficking violates many other laws as well, including those against kidnapping, slavery, false imprisonment, and pandering.

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adjective

1. catering to or profiting from the weaknesses, vices, or unreasonable desires of others.

   He’s the epitome of the pandering politician, ready to say yes to everyone.

Other Word Forms

• panderingly adverb

Etymology

Origin of pandering

First recorded in 1600–10; pander + -ing ¹ ( def. ) for the noun senses; pander + -ing ² ( def. ) for the adjective sense

Example Sentences

But it strikes a false and pandering note, since Tartuffe, as in Molière, has been plainly exposed as an opportunistic, lascivious fraud—and the only one in the play.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 17, 2025

I’m not saying anyone should pity a woman who built her career pandering to sexism, even if she doesn’t like being on the receiving end.

From Salon • Jul. 7, 2025

There’s another song called “Walk Away,” but we thought that might be pandering.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 28, 2025

Yoon feared that pandering to the public might prevent him achieving his goals, and hoped people would eventually recognise he was doing a good job, Shin explained.

From BBC • Apr. 3, 2025

We’d been taught that worrying about inmates’ concerns was tantamount to pandering, that it almost demeaned an officer.

From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover