as in gracious
formal
willing or eager to please other people
a complaisant young intern who happily accepted any task
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Recent Examples of complaisant
Every day, Congress and the media stand by in complaisant silence that tells the rest of the world we U.S. citizens cannot be trusted to elect prudent leaders.
—
Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 13 July 2025
However, Imperial County landowners and complaisant U.S. Bureau of Reclamation officials ignored that limit, allowing rapid consolidation of land, says Andrés, who wrote his doctoral dissertation on the county’s early years.
—Janet Wilson, ProPublica, 9 Nov. 2023
Last month Ferrari lofted its banners over a resort near the southern port of Cagliari and invited journalists to test-drive the new Ferrari Roma Spider, taking advantage of the excellent tarmac, ideal weather and complaisant authorities.
—Dan Neil, WSJ, 5 Oct. 2023
Overall, the song feels like a deep analysis and reflection on the complaisant position men may take in love and relationships, giving us a track that reams out awful boyfriends and the mindless behavior of their partners who continue to allow them back into their lives to act this way.
—Abby Dupes, Seventeen, 21 May 2022
But Ohio shouldn’t get complaisant.
—Julie Washington, cleveland, 8 Apr. 2021
In each case, the man has an energetic wife who has continued making public appearances while her husband retreats behind a veil of discretion at which a complaisant press seems reluctant to tug.
—Meghan Cox Gurdon, WSJ, 3 Mar. 2023
Private institutional investors such as BlackRock and Vanguard tend to be more complaisant about CEO pay — except for European funds.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 1 Mar. 2023
His admirers included such luminaries as U.S. Sen. Robert Wagner, all of whom turned a complaisant eye to the married Crater’s other life as a randy stage-door johnny with a mistress and a harem of chorus girls and Polly Adler hookers.
—Edward Kosner, WSJ, 20 June 2022
Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 13 July 2025
However, Imperial County landowners and complaisant U.S. Bureau of Reclamation officials ignored that limit, allowing rapid consolidation of land, says Andrés, who wrote his doctoral dissertation on the county’s early years.
—Janet Wilson, ProPublica, 9 Nov. 2023
Last month Ferrari lofted its banners over a resort near the southern port of Cagliari and invited journalists to test-drive the new Ferrari Roma Spider, taking advantage of the excellent tarmac, ideal weather and complaisant authorities.
—Dan Neil, WSJ, 5 Oct. 2023
Overall, the song feels like a deep analysis and reflection on the complaisant position men may take in love and relationships, giving us a track that reams out awful boyfriends and the mindless behavior of their partners who continue to allow them back into their lives to act this way.
—Abby Dupes, Seventeen, 21 May 2022
But Ohio shouldn’t get complaisant.
—Julie Washington, cleveland, 8 Apr. 2021
In each case, the man has an energetic wife who has continued making public appearances while her husband retreats behind a veil of discretion at which a complaisant press seems reluctant to tug.
—Meghan Cox Gurdon, WSJ, 3 Mar. 2023
Private institutional investors such as BlackRock and Vanguard tend to be more complaisant about CEO pay — except for European funds.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 1 Mar. 2023
His admirers included such luminaries as U.S. Sen. Robert Wagner, all of whom turned a complaisant eye to the married Crater’s other life as a randy stage-door johnny with a mistress and a harem of chorus girls and Polly Adler hookers.
—Edward Kosner, WSJ, 20 June 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for complaisant
Adjective
-
The man was gifted, gracious, often generous and seldom mean-spirited.—
Bruce Fein,
Baltimore Sun,
10 July 2025
-
But goodness gracious, the Rockies are only (14-36) under Schaeffer after going 7-33 under Black.—
Ken Rosenthal,
New York Times,
8 July 2025
Adjective
-
That You?' Tears at What Golden Retriever Does Every Night for 'Long Lost Best Friend' Not all feedback was friendly, though.—
Alice Gibbs,
MSNBC Newsweek,
2 Aug. 2025
-
The players — including new signing Noni Madueke — will report back to London Colney on Monday ahead of the friendly against Villarreal on August 6.—
James McNicholas,
New York Times,
2 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
Firing off hundreds of identical applications and CVs is unlikely to land you that dream role, so every application needs a thoughtful approach.—
Bernard Marr,
Forbes.com,
29 July 2025
-
The attention Buzz has received from fans online has even inspired thoughtful next steps.—
Ashley Vega,
People.com,
28 July 2025
Adjective
-
Senate Majority Leader John Thune may move to set up piles of nominee votes and test whether Democrats are amenable to a deal to move them more quickly.—
Burgess Everett,
semafor.com,
28 July 2025
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Today such a mission would cost billions of dollars, however, and wouldn’t be amenable to upgrades or enduring operations.—
Nadia Drake,
Scientific American,
22 July 2025
Adjective
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Sources described this as a mutually agreeable parting of ways that came about as part of Range’s biannual review process.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
11 July 2025
-
The sycophancy problem in action The Stanford study's findings about AI sycophancy—the tendency to be overly agreeable and validate user beliefs—may help explain some recent incidents where ChatGPT conversations have led to psychological crises.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
11 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Complaisant.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/complaisant. Accessed 6 Aug. 2025.
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