finagle

verb

fi·​na·​gle fə-ˈnā-gəl 

finagled; finagling fə-ˈnā-g(ə-)liŋ 

transitive verb

1

: to obtain (something) by indirect or involved means

finagle a ride home

2

: to obtain (something) by trickery

He finagled his way into the concert.

intransitive verb

: to use devious or dishonest methods to achieve one's ends

I have long craved a convention where someone had to wheel and deal, … maneuver and finagle, to win the crown.

—Mark Plotkin

finagler

fə-ˈnā-g(ə-)lər 

noun

Synonyms

• contrive
• engineer
• finesse
• frame
• machinate
• maneuver
• manipulate
• mastermind
• negotiate
• wangle

Examples of finagle in a Sentence

A con man finagled my neighbor out of four hundred dollars.

let me look at my schedule and see if I can't finagle a visit to the museum

Recent Examples on the Web

Ruby even somehow finagles AJ’s ultimate true crime fixation, Amanda Knox, into meeting AJ for dinner. —Scarlett Harris, IndieWire, 21 Dec. 2024

Should government make the choice for us by finagling subsidies to favor produce and poultry over meat and dairy? —Boston Herald Editorial Staff, Boston Herald, 8 May 2024

Shapiro and his business partner, Jeff Franklin, finagled a deal with New York’s fledgling USA Network to supply two hours of content a night, which eventually turned into eight; the network would split the advertising revenue with them 50/50, at $300 for a 30-second slot. —Philip Sherburne, Pitchfork, 9 Dec. 2024

In June 1993, Caldwell finagled a job as a tennis instructor at Virginia’s oldest girls’ camp, Camp Carysbrook, by presenting himself as a student at Roanoke College. —Brendan Borrell, Outside Online, 17 Oct. 2017

Word History

Etymology

perhaps alteration of fainaigue to renege

First Known Use

circa 1924, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Kids Definition

finagle

verb

fi·​na·​gle fə-ˈnā-gəl 

finagled; finagling -g(ə-)liŋ 

: to use trickery to get what one wants

finagler

-g(ə-)lər 

noun