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
Just enough with the sanctimonious explanations.
—
Troy Renck, Denver Post, 26 Sep. 2025
The point here was clear for those who chose to listen: the President doesn’t care one bit about all those sanctimonious calls for healing.
—Susan B. Glasser, New Yorker, 11 Sep. 2025
Of course, most of these sanctimonious snore-mongers linger on in one shrunken form or another, still screaming obscenities and shaking their fists at the moon.
—Howie Carr, Boston Herald, 28 June 2025
The smug and sanctimonious tenor of their briefing makes that plain.
—Christie D’zurilla, Los Angeles Times, 18 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for sanctimonious
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sanctimonious
Adjective
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All of this is impressive enough, but there are tales that the bible was written in a single night by none other than the Dark Lord himself, not a pious scribe.—
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The suspects may seem pious, but which of them committed the ultimate sin of murder?—
Adjective
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Diplomacy is preferable, but diplomacy without credibility is meaningless.—
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Sadly, these beliefs become meaningless when college turns into a test of how much a person can endure instead of a career path.—
Cite this Entry
“Sanctimonious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sanctimonious. Accessed 12 Jan. 2026.
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