cherry-picking

verb

present participle of cherry-pick
as in selecting
to decide to accept (someone or something) from a group of possibilities cherry-picked the spacious corner office for his corporate fief

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of cherry-picking Families spent Mother's Day filling buckets and making memories at Dell'Osso Farms in Lathrop, where crowds gathered Sunday for cherry-picking season in the heart of California's top cherry-producing county. — Charlie Lapastora, CBS News, 11 May 2026 Cha chaan tengs grew in popularity, cherry-picking elements from all three restaurants to create a new type of cuisine. — Sam Stone, Bon Appetit Magazine, 9 Apr. 2026 But most of this research is co-authored by Sikiric, who holds several patents related to BPC-157, and some experts have accused him of cherry-picking evidence. — Dhruv Khullar, New Yorker, 6 Apr. 2026 The Justice Department has pushed back on the defense suggestion that Bondi continues to profit from Ballard’s ongoing representation of UnitedHealth Group and accused Mangione’s lawyers of creating such a misimpression by cherry-picking language from her public financial disclosure report. — Nicki Brown, CNN Money, 9 Jan. 2026 Vartkessian renders them neither clinically nor sensationally—a fine line to walk—and cherry-picking details for this review feels grossly reductive, like a thumbnail sketch of a scene of desolation. — Dan Piepenbring, Harpers Magazine, 30 Dec. 2025 Following Democrats’ release, Republicans accused Democrats of cherry-picking the emails, later releasing a tranche of 20,000 pages of documents both sides received from the Epstein estate last week. — Emily Brooks, The Hill, 13 Nov. 2025 More than 85 scientists denounced the report, accusing officials of cherry-picking facts and figures to allow for the administration’s fossil fuel ambitions. — Solcyré Burga, Time, 23 Sep. 2025 Sisters Mackinley and Taylor Hill are taking inspiration from their own lives and cherry-picking a collection of juicy new jewelry for their debut line, Stone Fruit. — Julia Teti, Footwear News, 16 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cherry-picking
  1. selecting
  2. choosing
  3. picking
Verb
  • For example, selecting a chair that encourages an upright posture can reduce pain and injury risk, especially when gamers couple ergonomics with an exercise program that centers on functional strength, mobility and stretching of the upper limbs.
    — Erica D. Henn, The Conversation, 28 Aug. 2026
  • The city will begin the process of selecting a shelter operator next year, Bontrager previously said during a community meeting.
    — Camryn Dadey, Sacbee.com, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of selecting
Verb
  • By choosing a highly machinable material and bonding it, Flit achieves a frame that as light and structurally sound as titanium, but at a fraction of the production complexity – and cost.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 29 Aug. 2026
  • The clearest sign of the change came in 2024, when a study recorded Americans choosing cannabis over alcohol for daily consumption, marking the first time in history that cannabis has overtaken alcohol as the preferred daily substance.
    — Dario Sabaghi, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of choosing
Verb
  • Allergists recommend bypassing diphenhydramine (Benadryl) and instead, picking your favorite nonsedating antihistamine pill, like fexofenadine (Allegra), loratadine (Claritin) or cetirizine (Zyrtec), according to the World Allergy Organization.
    — Dr. Jill Grimes, CNN Money, 29 Aug. 2026
  • Now, the state is essentially picking winners, not rescuing big US companies that are deemed critical to the economy.
    — Norah Rami, Fortune, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of picking

Browse Nearby Words

cherry-picked
cherry-picking
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Cite this Entry

“Cherry-picking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cherry-picking. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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