filibuster

noun fil·i·bus·ter \ ˈfi-lə-ˌbə-stər \

Updated on: 26 Apr 2018

Definition of filibuster

1 : an irregular military adventurer; specifically : an American engaged in fomenting insurrections in Latin America in the mid-19th century

[²filibuster]

a : the use of extreme dilatory (see dilatory 1) tactics (as by making long speeches) in an attempt to delay or prevent action especially in a legislative assembly

b : an instance of this practice

The filibuster delayed the voting on the bill for over a week.

See filibuster defined for English-language learners

See filibuster defined for kids

Examples of filibuster in a Sentence

They engaged in a filibuster that lasted for over a week.

Recent Examples of filibuster from the Web

Both voted against the measure, which still passed the House but could not overcome a Democratic filibuster in the Senate.

— ronald j. hansen, azcentral, "2 Arizona Democrats side with Donald Trump more often than some Republicans," 1 Apr. 2018
The legislation appears to have enough support from Democrats to avoid a filibuster when the Senate votes Tuesday to call the bill up for debate.

— maureen groppe, Indianapolis Star, "Donnelly joins Republicans in move to roll back regulations on banking industry," 6 Mar. 2018
That compromise — specifically designed to win the support of Senate Democrats and avoid a filibuster — ended an 8-hour partial government shutdown Friday and signaled a budget truce for at least the next 19 months.

— gregory korte, USA TODAY, "What's in Trump's 2019 budget proposal? Funding for wall, infrastructure and fighting opioid abuse," 12 Feb. 2018
Pelosi’s speech was technically not a filibuster, a procedure reserved for the Senate and famously used by the minority to block legislation, but no longer requiring senators even to appear on the floor.

— carolyn lochhead, San Francisco Chronicle, "Pelosi speaks for 8 hours on House floor, demands debate on ‘Dreamers’," 7 Feb. 2018
Sixty votes were needed to end the Democrats' filibuster, and the party's senators provided 33 of the 81 the measure got.

— jared boyd, AL.com, "Mobile Fire-Rescue investigating arson outside tire shop," 22 Jan. 2018
Without the fast-track budget reconciliation, there is no chance entitlement cuts conservative Republicans are seeking can be enacted because Democrats can employ a Senate filibuster.

— Fortune, "U.S. Budget Deficit Expected to Surpass $1 Trillion by 2020," 9 Apr. 2018
While the Senate has eliminated the filibuster rule for confirmation votes on presidential appointees, Republican Senate leaders are loath to end it entirely because Democrats could use it against them in the future.

— david jackson, USA TODAY, "Donald Trump revives rhetorical war over Mexico, immigration, DACA," 2 Apr. 2018
Anyone with a sense of history who has thought through the institutional dynamics at play recognizes that ending the filibuster would, over the long-term, benefit liberals dramatically more than conservatives.

— james hohmann, courant.com, "Analysis: Trump's DACA tweetstorm speaks volumes about his presidency," 2 Apr. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'filibuster.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of filibuster

Spanish filibustero, literally, freebooter

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1851

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

Other Government and Politics Terms

agent provocateur, agitprop, autarky, cabal, egalitarianism, federalism, hegemony, plenipotentiary, popular sovereignty, socialism

filibuster

verb

Definition of filibuster

filibustered; filibustering play \ˈfi-lə-ˌbə-st(ə-)riŋ\

intransitive verb

1 : to carry out insurrectionist activities in a foreign country

2 : to engage in a filibuster

transitive verb

: to subject to a filibuster

—

filibusterer

play \ˈfi-lə-ˌbə-stər-ər\ noun

Recent Examples of filibuster from the Web

But even if the Warren wing tried to filibuster, the GOP majority — with the support of Democrats — had more than the 60 votes needed to overcome a blockade.

— Washington Post, "Banking bill brings out Schumer’s messy midterm strategy," 15 Mar. 2018
Is a land-use system where, no matter the community support, anything can be filibustered really good government?

— fenit nirappil, Washington Post, "Dry D.C. planning document fuels heated debate over future of expensive city," 20 Mar. 2018
But there's no reason why the GOP has to automatically filibuster.

— Newsweek, "Analysis," 14 Mar. 2018
Chan argues that those resistance efforts themselves, including street demonstrations and filibustering by the prodemocracy camp in the legislature, undermine rule of law.

— kelvin chan, BostonGlobe.com, "Hong Kong election gauges city’s willingness to defy Beijing," 11 Mar. 2018
The ability to filibuster nominations was a formal Senate rule.

— salvador rizzo, Washington Post, "Are Senate Republicans killing ‘blue slip’ for court nominees?," 21 Feb. 2018
Senate Democrats — joined by some GOP deficit hawks and immigration allies — were set to filibuster a stopgap funding bill approved by the House on Thursday.

— latimes.com, "Trump tweet casts doubt on likelihood of averting shutdown," 20 Jan. 2018
There was talk of pursuing welfare reform in the new year, but if Democrats have the ability to filibuster that goes from unlikely to impossible.

— margaret hartmann, Daily Intelligencer, "GOP Leaders Mull Giving Up on Obamacare Repeal, Getting Much Else Done in 2018," 11 Jan. 2018
The other $131 billion of the spending-cap increase is meant to bribe Senate Democrats not to filibuster the new defense spending.

— brian riedl, National Review, "Republicans Begin a Spending Spree," 9 Feb. 2018

Origin and Etymology of filibuster

see ¹filibuster

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1851

in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

See Words from the same year

FILIBUSTER Defined for English Language Learners

filibuster

noun

Definition of filibuster for English Language Learners

: an effort to prevent action in a legislature (such as the U.S. Senate or House of Representatives) by making a long speech or series of speeches

Law Dictionary

filibuster

noun fil·i·bus·ter \ ˈfi-lə-ˌbəs-tər \

legal Definition of filibuster

: the use of extreme dilatory tactics in an attempt to delay or prevent action especially in a legislative assembly; also : an instance of this practice