as in ruse
a clever often underhanded means to achieve an end
I couldn't tell whether her earlier poor-mouthing had been sincere or just a gambit to get me to pick up the dinner check
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Recent Examples of gambit
The aggressive gambit of diving into districts controlled by the other party is hardly ordinary.
—
Mike Lillis, The Hill, 30 Mar. 2025
That gambit aimed to curtail the Supreme Court’s ability to set constitutional limits on the Netanyahu government’s actions.
—Bernard Avishai, New Yorker, 28 Mar. 2025
The gambit was pioneered by Michael Saylor’s Strategy, the enterprise software company formally known as MicroStrategy that has acquired more than $40 billion in Bitcoin and seen its share price soar.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 26 Mar. 2025
If the other AGIs take the bait, the insidious AGI stands tall as the best, assuming nobody finds out the underhanded gambit at play.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes, 21 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for gambit
Mike Lillis, The Hill, 30 Mar. 2025
That gambit aimed to curtail the Supreme Court’s ability to set constitutional limits on the Netanyahu government’s actions.
—Bernard Avishai, New Yorker, 28 Mar. 2025
The gambit was pioneered by Michael Saylor’s Strategy, the enterprise software company formally known as MicroStrategy that has acquired more than $40 billion in Bitcoin and seen its share price soar.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 26 Mar. 2025
If the other AGIs take the bait, the insidious AGI stands tall as the best, assuming nobody finds out the underhanded gambit at play.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes, 21 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for gambit
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gambit
Noun
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Richie buys Harry's ruse regarding Tommy's murder, but there's a catch.—
Matt Cabral,
EW.com,
20 Apr. 2025
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The wedding started as an elaborate three-way ruse concocted by Wai-Tung, a gay Taiwanese American man; his white boyfriend, Simon (Mitchell Lichtenstein); and Wei-Wei, an undocumented Chinese immigrant.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
19 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Nearly 30 years ago California legislators faced a test of their integrity in voting for an electricity deregulation scheme that ratepayers are still paying for.—
Jamie Court,
Mercury News,
19 Apr. 2025
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And perhaps the most frustrating and ironic aspect about these potential cuts is that in the scheme of the U.S. government’s overall budget, Mars gets much more of the planetary science budget than Venus.—
Bruce Dorminey,
Forbes.com,
18 Apr. 2025
Noun
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The company, which sells hot and iced coffee, tea, shakes, as well as burritos and tacos, also hosts classes to teach dogs tricks.—
Saleen Martin,
USA Today,
25 Apr. 2025
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Another simple trick to avoid seeming evasive: Answer questions with yes or no, first; get into the explanation afterwards.—
Rob Davis,
Forbes.com,
24 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Gambit.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gambit. Accessed 27 Apr. 2025.
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