as in to cajole
to get (someone) to do something by gentle urging, special attention, or flattery
trying to coax their father into taking them on a ski trip, the teens mentioned what a great skier he is
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of coax
Though he’s been working in omnivore restaurants, Castellón is himself a vegan and now uses his familiarity with live fire cooking to coax the produce that is the centerpiece of the menu to its peak potential.
—
Candice Woo, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 June 2025
With tamarind, Worcestershire and plenty of onions, the sauce helps coax out the wood smoke in the meat.
—Jenn Harris, Los Angeles Times, 9 June 2025
About half that time was spent in near silence as auctioneer Max Fawcett, head of Christie’s Geneva jewelry department, coaxed two phone bidders to increase their bids from $8.1 million to the final hammer price of $9.5 million, as seen through Christie’s livestream of the sale.
—Anthony Demarco, Forbes.com, 18 June 2025
Yes, a Bernie Sanders voter shot Rep. Steve Scalise, but Sanders always condemns political violence and is not a gun nut coaxing it in his public life.
—Mark Green, New York Daily News, 18 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for coax
Candice Woo, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 June 2025
With tamarind, Worcestershire and plenty of onions, the sauce helps coax out the wood smoke in the meat.
—Jenn Harris, Los Angeles Times, 9 June 2025
About half that time was spent in near silence as auctioneer Max Fawcett, head of Christie’s Geneva jewelry department, coaxed two phone bidders to increase their bids from $8.1 million to the final hammer price of $9.5 million, as seen through Christie’s livestream of the sale.
—Anthony Demarco, Forbes.com, 18 June 2025
Yes, a Bernie Sanders voter shot Rep. Steve Scalise, but Sanders always condemns political violence and is not a gun nut coaxing it in his public life.
—Mark Green, New York Daily News, 18 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for coax
Recent Examples of Synonyms for coax
Verb
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Saturday’s vote capped off a tumultuous week of revisions and cajoling over Trump’s agenda, a hodge-podge of tax, border, and defense priorities.—
David Sivak,
The Washington Examiner,
29 June 2025
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Allies have been corralled, cajoled and pressured to hike their defense expenditure from 2% to 5% of each member nation's gross domestic product by 2035, even as some have struggled to meet the lower target.—
Holly Ellyatt,Steve Sedgwick,
CNBC,
25 June 2025
Verb
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The shift in temperature translates into a false spring, lures the seeds to crack open; without this deception, the seeds refuse to sprout into life.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
10 July 2025
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The National Museum of African American History and Culture’s archive features postcards depicting Black children sitting near swamps to lure alligators.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
10 July 2025
Verb
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But what really seduced me was the transgressive idea of imagining who else lives inside each of us.—
Jamie Lang,
Variety,
19 June 2025
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Teenagers and their parents can be easily seduced, so Underwood is respected for his role in keeping those players at Thorp Arch.—
Beren Cross,
New York Times,
16 June 2025
Verb
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According to the most recent survey conducted by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB), sentiment among U.S. homebuilders is now at its lowest level since 2022, as many are forced to cut prices and offer incentives to entice reluctant buyers.—
Giulia Carbonaro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 June 2025
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Consider homing in on messaging to entice potential guests at a state level, and including campaign variety that appeals to neighboring regions.—
Adam Deflorian,
Forbes.com,
27 June 2025
Verb
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Eli Mintz, a Yiddish-theatre star, played Uncle David with a high, wheedling voice, his hands a blur of gesticulation, and the Goldberg children were portrayed by Gentile actors, including the endearing Arlene (Fuzzy) McQuade as the preteen Rosalie, a studious girl with a sleek bob.—
Emily Nussbaum,
New Yorker,
9 June 2025
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The ObamaCare failure made the tax cut harder, but after months of jawboning and wheedling, the White House got the deal done at the end of 2017.—
Chris Stirewalt,
The Hill,
2 May 2025
Verb
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Her new report looks at how Nashville employers are wooing workers back to offices, following years of remote work.—
Sandy Mazza,
The Tennessean,
2 July 2025
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One reason may be housing costs—as those shot up, lower-cost housing in other states, combined with remote work opportunities, may have wooed middle-class residents away from the Bay State.—
Kelly Phillips Erb,
Forbes.com,
27 June 2025
Verb
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Anyone with additional information is urged to contact Cold Case Detective Ayala at (510) 675-5259.—
Lesley Cosme Torres,
People.com,
9 July 2025
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Wright launched a campaign on Platt’s behalf urging influential people like Benjamin Franklin to help him.—
Time,
Time,
9 July 2025
Verb
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Frazier then tried to subtly get the answer to the question fans have been begging to know — is Rihanna having a baby girl?—
Mya Abraham,
VIBE.com,
30 June 2025
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Within a month, my friends were begging me for more.—
Tim Carter,
Hartford Courant,
28 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Coax.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/coax. Accessed 13 Jul. 2025.
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