as in cane
a heavy rigid stick used as a weapon or for punishment
guards armed with bludgeons roamed the compound
Synonyms & Similar Words
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1
as in to slap
to deliver a blow to (someone or something) usually in a strong vigorous manner
remodelers bludgeoned the wall with a sledgehammer to join the two rooms
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in to lick
to strike repeatedly
a boxer bludgeoning his opponent
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of bludgeon
Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 2 July 2024
Pesticides can be valuable tools when used as scalpels, but when they are used as bludgeons, the evolution of resistance often undoes their efficacy.
—Frances Beinecke, Foreign Affairs, 1 Sep. 2012
Paul Larosa, CBS News, 11 Apr. 2025
Nobody is blameless when a team gets bludgeoned by 30-plus points on four occasions, with most of them happening in the past couple weeks.
—Shane Young, Forbes.com, 9 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bludgeon
Noun
Conservatives have had it in for Chevron deference for a long time; given their current majority on the court, the doctrine’s death has been a foregone conclusion, awaiting only the appearance of a suitable case to use as a bludgeon.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 2 July 2024
Pesticides can be valuable tools when used as scalpels, but when they are used as bludgeons, the evolution of resistance often undoes their efficacy.
—Frances Beinecke, Foreign Affairs, 1 Sep. 2012
Verb
Police said she had been bludgeoned, stabbed multiple times and stripped naked.
—Paul Larosa, CBS News, 11 Apr. 2025
Nobody is blameless when a team gets bludgeoned by 30-plus points on four occasions, with most of them happening in the past couple weeks.
—Shane Young, Forbes.com, 9 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bludgeon
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bludgeon
Noun
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Greer kicked him in the ribs, stomped on his head and picked up Snellings’ cane and hit the victim with it, Hoffman said.—
Emerson Clarridge,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
5 May 2025
-
Some carried their work briefcases, some American flags, some walked with canes, and others were pushed in wheelchairs…304,000 of them had been wounded in Vietnam.—
Stan Godlewski,
Hartford Courant,
3 May 2025
Verb
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Local News In 2020, Jennifer Vasquez alleged he was kicked, slapped and shoved by husband In a 2020 protective order, Jennifer Vasquez alleged that her husband verbally abused, kicked, slapped, and shoved her.—
Mikenzie Frost,
Baltimore Sun,
1 May 2025
-
The film, a part of the sprawling Marvel franchise, was approved for release in China before Washington and Beijing slapped tit-for-tat tariffs on each other.—
Casey Hall and Sophie Yu,
USA Today,
1 May 2025
Verb
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She even, no joke, at one point, spits on the stage and licks it back up.—
Christopher Borrelli,
Chicago Tribune,
29 Apr. 2025
-
When the family's roast dinner was over, the OP (original poster) set the plates and some pots and pans on the floor for her dog to lick.—
Erin Clack,
People.com,
27 Apr. 2025
Noun
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When more officers got to the scene, while officers held Nichols' arms and hit him with a barrage of kicks, punches, baton strikes and pepper spray.—
Jack Armstrong,
USA Today,
2 May 2025
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Video of the beating, captured by a police pole camera, showed Nichols being held by his arms as officers punched, kicked and struck him with a baton, according to reports from the AP and The Commercial Appeal newspaper.—
Sacbee.com,
Sacbee.com,
28 Apr. 2025
Verb
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Pacers guard Tyrese Haliburton hit the game-winning shot, crossing over Antetokounmpo and driving to the basket for a right-handed layup with 1.3 seconds left.—
Chantz Martin,
FOXNews.com,
2 May 2025
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The western starring Alec Baldwin, who also came up with the story and serves as a producer, was hit by tragedy during production in October 2021 when Baldwin’s prop gun discharged during a rehearsal, killing cinematographer Halyna Hutchins and also injuring director-screenwriter Joel Souza.—
Pete Hammond,
Deadline,
1 May 2025
Verb
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Conforto, representing the tying run, pounded a 95.2 mph groundball for an inning-ending double play.—
Fabian Ardaya,
New York Times,
9 May 2025
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My heart was pounding through my chest standing there hitting.—
Gary Phillips,
New York Daily News,
8 May 2025
Noun
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Thomas’ case later became a flashpoint in the turbulent tenure of Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price, amid claims that the county’s top prosecutor used her office as a political cudgel against Thomas’ attorney on the eve of trial.—
Jakob Rodgers,
Mercury News,
27 Apr. 2025
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Too often, schools and districts wield data as a punitive cudgel rather than a tool for improvement.—
Scott White,
Forbes.com,
28 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Guests can also hop a free shuttle to the hotel’s sister property, Skylark Negril Beach Resort, smack on Seven Mile Beach.—
Laura Begley Bloom,
Forbes.com,
30 Apr. 2025
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Someone on the other team took a shot at him, and the puck tipped right under his visor and hit him in the eye, squarely smacking him right in the eyeball.—
Meredith Wilshere,
People.com,
27 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Bludgeon.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bludgeon. Accessed 13 May. 2025.
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