as in pious
formal + disapproving
pretending to be morally better than other people
sanctimonious politicians A sanctimonious speech from someone who refused to acknowledge his own past failings.
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Recent Examples of sanctimonious
The spiral of events that follow ups the pathos while quietly commenting on rigid patriarchal rules, male privilege, sanctimonious moral posturing, the denial of women’s bodily autonomy and contempt for otherness, things all still very much with us today.
—
David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 15 Feb. 2026
There’s nothing sanctimonious about insisting on civil rights for transgender people nor about fighting for racial justice.
—Literary Hub, 29 Jan. 2026
Advertisement For those of us who’ve historically found Stause to be sanctimonious, passive-aggressive, and prone to playing the victim, there’s plenty in both her post and her behavior throughout the reunion to support that view.
—Judy Berman, Time, 5 Nov. 2025
That online comment was characteristic of the usual sanctimonious pablum, the kind of casual moral high ground afforded only to a native English speaker or to someone willfully ignorant of the daily indignities non-native speakers face.
—Sheon Han, Wired News, 27 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sanctimonious
David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 15 Feb. 2026
There’s nothing sanctimonious about insisting on civil rights for transgender people nor about fighting for racial justice.
—Literary Hub, 29 Jan. 2026
Advertisement For those of us who’ve historically found Stause to be sanctimonious, passive-aggressive, and prone to playing the victim, there’s plenty in both her post and her behavior throughout the reunion to support that view.
—Judy Berman, Time, 5 Nov. 2025
That online comment was characteristic of the usual sanctimonious pablum, the kind of casual moral high ground afforded only to a native English speaker or to someone willfully ignorant of the daily indignities non-native speakers face.
—Sheon Han, Wired News, 27 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for sanctimonious
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sanctimonious
Adjective
-
The aim wasn’t to make the chatbot Bible-thumping or pious.—
Chris Stokel-Walker,
Scientific American,
26 May 2026
-
Maria, austere and deeply pious, runs the business with an iron hand, obsessed with making the family’s origins forgotten.—
Andreas Wiseman,
Deadline,
14 May 2026
Adjective
-
There’s a list of parts made from recycled bits which is fairly meaningless when the exercise is all at the concept level but nevertheless shows where GM’s thinking is heading.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
2 June 2026
-
The advertised base price is meaningless.—
Christopher Elliott,
USA Today,
2 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Sanctimonious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sanctimonious. Accessed 7 Jun. 2026.
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