filibuster

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

|Updated on: 17 Aug 2018

Examples: filibuster in a Sentence

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

Fortas is considered to be the first SCOTUS nominee to be blocked by a filibuster.

— olivia b. waxman, Time, "5 Reasons Why Supreme Court Nominations Have Failed," 10 July 2018
His first vote upon returning to Washington after beginning cancer treatment was to break a GOP filibuster.

— rick hampson, USA TODAY, "Hating McCain: Grant, Ted Kennedy and Nixon got a break at the end. But times change.," 23 May 2018
One factor has been Democrats’ habit of forcing the Republican Party leadership to invoke cloture for votes on key nominations, often referred to in public discourse as a filibuster.

— glenn kessler, Washington Post, "Trump’s complaint it would take 9 years to get his nominees approved (Part 2)," 24 Apr. 2018
President Bush had originally used a recess appointment to put him in the role after his nomination had been blocked by a Democratic filibuster.

— rebecca ballhaus, WSJ, "Trump Taps Iran Hawk John Bolton for NSA Post as McMaster Departs," 22 Mar. 2018
Republicans changed the rules during Gorsuch's confirmation to wipe out the main delaying tactic for Supreme Court nominees, the filibuster, and the need for 60 votes to defeat it.

— mark sherman, chicagotribune.com, "Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy retiring; Trump to get 2nd high-court pick," 27 June 2018
McCain worked with other senators to try to win enough votes for Bolton to overcome a filibuster, at a time when Bolton’s political standing was not strong because the direction of the Iraq War was unpopular.

— paul kane, BostonGlobe.com, "Bolton praises McCain but offers no apology for White House aide’s remark," 13 May 2018
The result has been a great deal of gridlock—aided, in the Senate, by filibusters that used to be rare and are now the norm.

— The Economist, "America’s electoral system gives the Republicans advantages over Democrats," 12 July 2018
Republicans have bested them in all their own favorite games, gerrymandering, filibusters, and weaponizing congressional procedure prominent among them.

— chris stirewalt, Fox News, "Power Rankings: Not so peachy primaries," 9 July 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

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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

Republicans changed the Senate rules last year so that Supreme Court nominees cannot be filibustered, meaning only 51 votes will be required to confirm.

— catherine lucey and lisa mascaro, BostonGlobe.com, "Barbed Senate words over timing of court confirmation," 28 June 2018
McCaskill joined other Democrats in filibustering Gorsuch’s nomination last year.

— bryan lowry, kansascity, "Newly open seat on Supreme Court puts pressure on McCaskill in key Senate race," 27 June 2018
Brown's win led to an end of a Democratic supermajority in the Senate, allowing Republicans to filibuster.

— jessica estepa, USA TODAY, "Before Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, here are 5 of the biggest U.S. political upsets," 27 June 2018
Nick Saban has used a bully pulpit, filibustered and knows the power of polls.

— rainer sabin, AL.com, "What Nick Saban said about running for office one day," 6 Jan. 2018
Collins and Murkowski could join Democrats in filibustering the confirmation.

— fred barnes, WSJ, "Mitch McConnell Is the Master of Confirming Judges," 9 July 2018
But Democrats had begun filibustering a number of Bush's judicial nominees, which Republicans saw as an affront to their agenda.

— CBS News, "Nuclear option: Why Trump's Supreme Court pick needs only 51 votes," 9 July 2018
Its momentum was halted, however, when Southern Democratic senators filibustered the proposal.

— erin b. logan, Washington Post, "Why Congress failed nearly 200 times to make lynching a federal crime," 5 July 2018
Democrats vowed to block his appointment, though a change to the rules means that Supreme Court picks can no longer be filibustered.

— The Economist, "Politics this week," 12 July 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