How to Use opportunistic in a Sentence

opportunistic

adjective
  • Still, Winston was opportunistic enough to keep his team in the game most of the way.
    — San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Oct. 2019
  • An opportunistic fan reached over the railling and claimed the ball as a souvenir.
    — Dennis Lin, sandiegouniontribune.com, 4 July 2017
  • The Bears are an opportunistic defense and have forced a turnover in 23 straight games.
    — Paris Wolfe, cleveland, 10 Sep. 2022
  • On defense, the Chiefs continue to be one of the most opportunistic units in the NFL.
    — Kelsey Conway, The Enquirer, 24 Jan. 2022
  • But get more opportunistic about the chance to bring more people in.
    — NBC News, 5 Mar. 2023
  • The opportunistic Browns, who forced five turnovers last week, weren’t done taking it away yet in the half.
    — cleveland, 4 Oct. 2020
  • This makes mahi one of the most opportunistic and least picky fish in the ocean — a boon for anglers of all ages and skill levels.
    — Joe Cermele, Outdoor Life, 19 Sep. 2024
  • This won’t be easy as the Scarlet Knights are tough, well-coached and opportunistic.
    — Carlos Monarrez, Detroit Free Press, 11 Nov. 2022
  • But what is working right now is Rakell in the role of the opportunistic hockey sniper.
    — Eric Stephens, Orange County Register, 18 Jan. 2017
  • The opportunistic Johnson spoiled that plan with her clutch theft and three-point play.
    — Rick O'Brien, Philly.com, 28 Mar. 2018
  • The fish still have to eat and will be very opportunistic when presented with a meal.
    — Terry Wickstrom, The Denver Post, 31 May 2017
  • Bolstered by an opportunistic bench that scored 15 points in the second quarter, the Lynx erased the 11-point deficit.
    — Jenna Ortiz, The Arizona Republic, 21 June 2022
  • Santana proved opportunistic 6:11 into play, parked at the right of the goal to get just enough on a shot to beat Silva.
    — Glenn Graham, baltimoresun.com, 7 Jan. 2018
  • At its best, this is an opportunistic moment for the Haslams.
    — Dan Labbe, cleveland, 31 Dec. 2019
  • Then the Tigers — aiming to be opportunistic — jumped into the mix.
    — Evan Petzold, Detroit Free Press, 6 Mar. 2021
  • The secondary is opportunistic and Matthew Stafford and the offense are dangerous in the red zone.
    — Detroit Free Press, 30 Sep. 2017
  • More than just being a bend-don’t-break unit in the red zone, Auburn’s defense has been opportunistic as well.
    — Tom Green | [email protected], al, 25 Nov. 2020
  • Jordan is off to a great start for the opportunistic Saints defense.
    — Tom Silverstein, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 21 Oct. 2017
  • Most thieves are opportunistic and will go for the bike that looks easiest and quickest to steal.
    — Matt Jancer, Wired, 24 Oct. 2020
  • Lucky for Watson, the run game was firing and the defense was opportunistic.
    — cleveland, 11 Dec. 2022
  • Had the Sox been more opportunistic, Whitlock might have pitched.
    — BostonGlobe.com, 5 Sep. 2021
  • What’s missing from the equations in Detroit and Kansas City are the opportunistic gains of churn.
    — Paul Daugherty, The Enquirer, 30 June 2022
  • As the Astros roll into Year 7 of their dynasty, Brown brings a steady and opportunistic hand.
    — Michael Shapiro, Chron, 23 Feb. 2023
  • Equal parts patient and opportunistic, Smith never gave up on the race even though all seemed lost.
    — Dan Wolken, USA TODAY, 2 May 2018
  • The rush toward NFTs might seem, well, opportunistic at least.
    — Abram Brown, Forbes, 28 Jan. 2022
  • One that's become the fulcrum around which one of the NFL's most opportunistic defense swings.
    — Will Graves, sun-sentinel.com, 11 Nov. 2019
  • In other words, one of these teams has been a little more opportunistic than the other.
    — Jeff Miller, Los Angeles Times, 6 Dec. 2020
  • For the Texans to do anything in the playoffs, the defense is going to have to play good-enough, opportunistic ball in the playoffs for a short stretch.
    — Stephanie Stradley, Houston Chronicle, 2 Jan. 2020
  • This striking bird, a relative of the crested caracara, was a scavenger and opportunistic hunter, feeding on seabird eggs, carrion, and small animals.
    — Scott Travers, Forbes.com, 29 June 2025
  • Candida is part of a healthy microbiota but in high abundance, it has been identified as an opportunistic microorganism, causing a reduction in community diversity, and unbalancing the gut microbiota.
    — New Atlas, 21 June 2025

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'opportunistic.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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