manipulate
verb (used with object)
to manage or influence skillfully, especially in an unfair manner.
had been manipulating
-
past perfect progressiveof manipulate.past perfect progressive
Used to describe an action that was ongoing continuously in the past up until another past event interrupted it.
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.
The four convictions came after an investigation from the Serious Fraud Office into whether traders had been manipulating Libor for profit.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2025
Photographers had been manipulating photos for more than a century before Photoshop was created, and it wasn’t the only piece of image editing software around in the early days of computers.
From The Verge ● Feb. 19, 2020
I had been manipulating everything to make sense.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 9, 2018
She added she was tired of lying and felt Urquhart had been manipulating her.
From Seattle Times ● Apr. 11, 2017
I knew you would,” shrieked Freydissa, as she raised herself from the wash-tub in which she had been manipulating some articles of clothing as if she were tearing Bertha to pieces— “why can’t you?”
From The Norsemen in the West by R. M. (Robert Michael) Ballantyne
