as in pressure
the use of power to impose one's will on another
it took some arm-twisting, but they eventually agreed to make a donation
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Recent Examples of arm-twisting
David D. Kirkpatrick, New Yorker, 31 Mar. 2025
After a long day of arm-twisting and internal party clashes, House Republicans on Tuesday narrowly passed their plan to advance President Donald Trump's legislative agenda.
—Sudiksha Kochi, USA TODAY, 27 Feb. 2025
But after some arm-twisting from a publisher, her journals were soon released as a book.
—Kevin Dolak, The Hollywood Reporter, 19 Feb. 2025
What about the shrill speculations that nefarious Trumpian arm-twisting was involved which pressured Netanyahu to comply?
—Melik Kaylan, Forbes, 20 Jan. 2025
Israel, often skeptical of UN solutions, would likely need some convincing to back a trusteeship, up to and including the type of U.S. arm-twisting seen recently over weapons shipments.
—Lloyd Axworthy, Foreign Affairs, 15 May 2024
After some arm-twisting by Mottola, the Recording Academy invited Martin to perform at the 41st Grammy Awards.
—Andrea Flores, Los Angeles Times, 20 May 2024
Biden’s verbal arm-twisting should not be taken lightly.
—Yossi Melman and Dan Raviv, TIME, 15 Apr. 2024
The Bush administration and its successor worked hard in cooperation with Yeltsin to make that happen, using a series of inducements and diplomatic arm-twisting.
—Serhii Plokhy, Foreign Affairs, 22 Nov. 2019
Noun
Thune has also tried to describe Trump’s arm-twisting of Zelensky in nobler language.
—David D. Kirkpatrick, New Yorker, 31 Mar. 2025
After a long day of arm-twisting and internal party clashes, House Republicans on Tuesday narrowly passed their plan to advance President Donald Trump's legislative agenda.
—Sudiksha Kochi, USA TODAY, 27 Feb. 2025
But after some arm-twisting from a publisher, her journals were soon released as a book.
—Kevin Dolak, The Hollywood Reporter, 19 Feb. 2025
What about the shrill speculations that nefarious Trumpian arm-twisting was involved which pressured Netanyahu to comply?
—Melik Kaylan, Forbes, 20 Jan. 2025
Israel, often skeptical of UN solutions, would likely need some convincing to back a trusteeship, up to and including the type of U.S. arm-twisting seen recently over weapons shipments.
—Lloyd Axworthy, Foreign Affairs, 15 May 2024
After some arm-twisting by Mottola, the Recording Academy invited Martin to perform at the 41st Grammy Awards.
—Andrea Flores, Los Angeles Times, 20 May 2024
Biden’s verbal arm-twisting should not be taken lightly.
—Yossi Melman and Dan Raviv, TIME, 15 Apr. 2024
The Bush administration and its successor worked hard in cooperation with Yeltsin to make that happen, using a series of inducements and diplomatic arm-twisting.
—Serhii Plokhy, Foreign Affairs, 22 Nov. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for arm-twisting
Noun
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However, if the pressure continues to mount, direct-to-consumer channels offer promising ways to bypass traditional store font issues to make sure all your beauty supply needs continue to be met.—
Kori Hale,
Forbes.com,
15 May 2025
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More: Trump will end Syria sanctions to 'give them a chance at greatness' The Israeli escalation came against Palestinian hopes that the Trump visit might provide pressure for a deescalation of violence.—
Nidal al-Mughrabi,
USA Today,
15 May 2025
Noun
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New Organization And Team Operating Model AI technology by itself will not yield value until there is an openness to take a fresh look at business processes and combine them with resource and tech dependency with no constraints.—
Balmukund Shukla,
Forbes.com,
16 May 2025
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This limitation is a significant constraint on his potential serving speed.—
Matthew Futterman,
New York Times,
15 May 2025
Verb
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Instead, there was a fast, tough, physical team flying around and making big-time plays, bullying the big-boy Tar Heels.—
Kels Dayton,
Hartford Courant,
30 Dec. 2024
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LeBron James scored 32 points one game after setting the NBA’s all-time minutes record for regular-season games, bullying the Kings on the offensive end while grabbing four steals on the defensive end.—
Dan Woike,
Los Angeles Times,
22 Dec. 2024
Noun
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Even then, lawmakers couldn’t resist the compulsion to split hairs.—
Robert Goulder,
Forbes.com,
14 Apr. 2025
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Books The Faithless Generation Traditional religion thrives in stable communities, not a world where innovators aim to ‘break things.’ Books Lies, Damned Lies, and Ideology John O’Sullivan The ideological lie persists, demanding compulsion to enforce its vision.—
Paul Baumann,
National Review,
17 Apr. 2025
Verb
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While the market’s recent volatility can be intimidating, experts generally recommend investors focus on their long-term goals.—
Ana Teresa Solá,
CNBC,
14 Mar. 2025
-
Relapse is alluring, Bart is intimidating, and Son is mysterious.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
14 Mar. 2025
Noun
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Donald Trump has proposed instead for the United States to use its economic and military predominance as tools of naked coercion, dispensing entirely with the niceties of international agreements and even domestic constitutional constraint.—
Margaret MacMillan,
The Atlantic,
30 Apr. 2025
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Newsweek Writers' Verdict This Week, Three Elections Will Show Trump's Worldwide Impact | Opinion Congress, Don't Give the Marijuana Industry a Tax Cut | Opinion Using vague government policy as a tool of political coercion is a tactic historically associated with authoritarian regimes.—
Mohammed Soliman,
MSNBC Newsweek,
28 Apr. 2025
Verb
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An extreme wind event is threatening one of Los Angeles’ toniest neighborhoods, igniting fires through Pacific Palisades.—
Kimberly Nordyke,
The Hollywood Reporter,
8 Jan. 2025
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The Palisades fire has garnered headlines, but the Hurst and Eaton fires have also been threatening very populated areas.—
Marshall Shepherd,
Forbes,
8 Jan. 2025
Verb
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Frazier, the woman with the Dubai video, said at first that the shaming comments upset her.—
Christopher Elliott,
USA TODAY,
27 Dec. 2024
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And make no mistake, travel shaming in the age of the internet is fun – at least for those doing the shaming.—
Christopher Elliott,
USA TODAY,
27 Dec. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Arm-twisting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/arm-twisting. Accessed 21 May. 2025.
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