Showing results for "pandering"

• present participle of pander.

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

See Examples For:

pandering

“The experience of being Arab and Muslim has been to be the object of hate by one party and the subject of pandering by another. Both of them are alienating,” he said.

From Slate ● Apr. 29, 2026

She'd grown weary of pandering to pop tropes of the "strong, independent female"; and wanted to present a "more honest and vulnerable" version of herself.

From BBC ● Apr. 28, 2026

It’s not just that the humor often feels too topical or reliant on pop culture, but that the culture it’s relying on is pandering to younger audiences.

From Salon ● Apr. 19, 2026

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

Ricky considered Luke for another second before glancing back to Doreen, a pandering smile on his face.

From "We'll Fly Away" by Bryan Bliss