Potemkin village

Definition of Potemkin villagenext

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 Potemkin village But when Microsoft built the Potemkin village that is Copilot and charged for it, well, no thank you. Jim Cramer, CNBC, 8 Feb. 2026 Only Alain seems eager to ignore the disinformation and embrace this Potemkin village as the real deal (except when his eyes show a gathering concern). Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times, 20 June 2025 But his proudest accomplishments amount to little more than a progressive Potemkin village. Paul Vallas, Chicago Tribune, 15 May 2025 Emma Stone and Nathan Fielder portray a married couple who build a Potemkin village of eco-friendly homes and pour-over coffee shops in a struggling New Mexico town. Jennifer Wilson, The New Yorker, 10 Mar. 2025 But behind the Potemkin village, the Khmer Rouge regime is declining and the war with Vietnam threatens to invade the country. Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 26 Nov. 2024 The resort reproduces an ancient Apulian town and farmhouse in a project that some locals have likened to a Mediterranean Potemkin village. Emma Bubola, New York Times, 11 June 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for Potemkin village
Noun
  • Unfortunately, all signs point to OLC's opinion being nothing but a legal fig leaf to justify the president's attacks on foreign civilians.
    Scott MacFarlane, CBS News, 9 Dec. 2025
  • Advertisement Xi did not even agree to the fig leaf of structural economic changes.
    Zack Cooper, Time, 7 Nov. 2025
Noun
  • This veteran droid is an even more Disneyfied version of VINCENT, who talks — for some reason — with the voice of legendary screen cowboy Slim Pickens.
    Richard Edwards, Space.com, 8 Feb. 2026
  • Another over-screen defender could make sense as a priority for the Nuggets' backcourt.
    Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 8 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • Gurus can deliver millions of devoted followers as a consolidated vote bank, and in return politicians may provide a shield of patronage, according to Ronki Ram, a professor at the Institute for Development and Communication in Chandigarh, who has researched Singh and the Dera Sacha Sauda.
    Rhea Mogul, CNN Money, 6 Feb. 2026
  • In 1651, Thomas Hobbes used the Leviathan to represent a great monster made up of tiny individual elements (the shields).
    Big Think, Big Think, 5 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • Setting decoys, crafting a blind and getting ready to hunt together, Crowson and I were in our element.
    Scott Haugen, Outdoor Life, 18 Dec. 2025
  • Why don’t small-town police ever close their interrogation-room blinds?
    Emma Specter, Vogue, 16 Dec. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Potemkin village.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/Potemkin%20village. Accessed 16 Feb. 2026.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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