variants
or bastinade
as in cane
a heavy rigid stick used as a weapon or for punishment
the guards savagely beat the prisoner's feet with a bastinado
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bastinado
Noun
-
The minutes-long standstill forced several people into the street; many more, including my husband and his cane, engaged in a potentially perilous stutter-step around the two knee-high, randomly moving yet noncommunicative vehicles.—
Culture Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Apr. 2026 -
As the Latin American and Caribbean flags waved across the giant sea of fans, with several people wearing the quintessentially Colombian black-and-white cane-fiber hats known as sombreros vueltiaos, a little girl sat atop her parent’s shoulders screaming with joy.—
Vanessa Diaz,
Rolling Stone,
13 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
After the Executive Office of Health and Human Services ordered the removal of tools like pepper gel, handcuffs and batons from the toolbelts of the Tewksbury Security Team specialists at the hospital, officials in Tewksbury were stunned, and immediately sought answers from the state.—
Peter Currier,
Boston Herald,
12 Apr. 2026
-
The baton has been waiting long enough.—
Felecia Hatcher,
Fortune,
7 Apr. 2026
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Bastinado.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bastinado. Accessed 18 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
