belabor

be·la·bor

verb \bi-ˈlā-bər, bē-\

Definition of BELABOR

transitive verb

1

a : to attack verbally b : to beat soundly

2

: to explain or insist on excessively <belabor the obvious>

Examples of BELABOR

1. Her habit of belaboring the obvious makes her a very boring speaker.
2. Please don't belabor the point.
3. He uses his newspaper column to belabor writers for even the most minor grammatical errors.

First Known Use of BELABOR

1596

Related to BELABOR

Synonyms: dwell (on or upon), harp (on)

Antonyms: disregard, forget, ignore, overlook, overpass, pass over, slight, slur (over)

Related Words: accent, accentuate, emphasize, pay (up), point (up), stress, underline, underscore

Near Antonyms: acclaim, commend, compliment, hail, laud, praise

see all synonyms and antonyms

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Rhymes with BELABOR

zeitgeber