as in threatened
to use blackmail against (someone)
The old man was being blackmailed by his nephew.
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Recent Examples of blackmailed
Groff said Epstein told her again after the 2008 plea deal that he was blackmailed.
—
Lauren Peller,
ABC News,
9 June 2026
In 2013, Southern Stars players were blackmailed into obeying instructions by having their salaries withheld.
—
Jacob Whitehead,
New York Times,
4 June 2026
This comes on the heels of reports of thousands of iPhone thefts in London, with their owners being blackmailed or threatened into giving the thieves their Apple ID credentials, so the thieves can unlock, wipe, and resell the phones.
—
Alan Henry,
PC Magazine,
29 May 2026
The show, which premiered on April 9 on Netflix, centers on siblings Nicky (Dan) and Morgan (Taylor Ortega), who get blackmailed into the world of organized crime.
—
Toria Sheffield,
PEOPLE,
13 Apr. 2026
Dan Levy knows exactly what keeps him up at night, as the possibility of being blackmailed into committing crimes has haunted him for years.
—
Kennedy French,
Variety,
11 Apr. 2026
The show follows two directionless siblings, Morgan and Nicky (Levy), who are blackmailed into the world of organized crime.
—
Carly Thomas,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Apr. 2026
When he gets blackmailed by a mystery man, Reeves' character gets help from his high school besties, played by Cameron Diaz and Matt Bomer.
—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
10 Apr. 2026
When Martin gets blackmailed by gangsters, the pair knock off a mafia henchman and plunge themselves deep into the Australian underworld, all while trying to keep their business afloat.
—
David Faris,
TheWeek,
4 Mar. 2026
Lauren Peller,
ABC News,
9 June 2026
In 2013, Southern Stars players were blackmailed into obeying instructions by having their salaries withheld.
—
Jacob Whitehead,
New York Times,
4 June 2026
This comes on the heels of reports of thousands of iPhone thefts in London, with their owners being blackmailed or threatened into giving the thieves their Apple ID credentials, so the thieves can unlock, wipe, and resell the phones.
—
Alan Henry,
PC Magazine,
29 May 2026
The show, which premiered on April 9 on Netflix, centers on siblings Nicky (Dan) and Morgan (Taylor Ortega), who get blackmailed into the world of organized crime.
—
Toria Sheffield,
PEOPLE,
13 Apr. 2026
Dan Levy knows exactly what keeps him up at night, as the possibility of being blackmailed into committing crimes has haunted him for years.
—
Kennedy French,
Variety,
11 Apr. 2026
The show follows two directionless siblings, Morgan and Nicky (Levy), who are blackmailed into the world of organized crime.
—
Carly Thomas,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Apr. 2026
When he gets blackmailed by a mystery man, Reeves' character gets help from his high school besties, played by Cameron Diaz and Matt Bomer.
—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
10 Apr. 2026
When Martin gets blackmailed by gangsters, the pair knock off a mafia henchman and plunge themselves deep into the Australian underworld, all while trying to keep their business afloat.
—
David Faris,
TheWeek,
4 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for blackmailed
Verb
-
Here, a quilt flies over the spacious skies of Utah’s Dead Horse Point State Park (an area threatened by drilling permits approved by the US Bureau of Land Management) bearing Wes Gordon’s Georgia, Ashlynn Park’s Arkansas, and Sergio Hudson’s South Carolina, among others.
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Trump on Monday threatened to sue the network again over its coverage of problems with the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool following renovations touted by the president on a near-daily basis.
Verb
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Like many European carmakers, it has been squeezed by fresh tariffs on its exports to the United States as well as struggling to counter the rise of Chinese electric vehicles manufacturers, including BYD.
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Until then, concern that the smartphone market would continue to be squeezed by memory chip shortages had led investors to take a cautious view on Qualcomm’s prospects.
Verb
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The necessity of it to my defence against a more heinous charge could alone have extorted from me so painful an indecorum.
-
Richards attained fame as a pioneering male supermodel in major ad campaigns by the likes of Bruce Weber, Richard Avedon, and Helmut Newton, but all along he was being extorted and exploited by Mierers and his followers to bolster (and bankroll) their shaky, pseudoscientific philosophy.
Verb
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O'Hearn doubled twice, including one that drove in a pair in the seventh.
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Bev Hendry, 72, and his brother, Brian Hendry, 67, drove to Miami in a van after attending the two games in Boston along with friends Bob Greig, 70, Steve Docherty, 56, and John Erskine, 77.
Verb
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The study was later shut down after an internal review confirmed that patients were coerced into participating.
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Weger later insisted he had been coerced into making the confession.
Verb
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While the original impressed us with its ability to enhance product absorption and boost radiance, the new Booster Pro X2 doubles down with stronger output, dual-electrode technology, and seven treatment modes designed to improve everything from dull skin to large pores.
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In our full review, we were impressed by the Ryzen AI Max processor's ability to leverage system RAM as VRAM for high-end graphics performance without a dedicated GPU.
Verb
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In 2018, reflecting unfortunate norms in worldwide sports media, female sports journalists representing global news outlets at the FIFA World Cup in Russia were physically harassed and assaulted by fans on camera.
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Police say Bunn stalked and harassed the woman in a blue Chevrolet Silverado and would park in areas to watch and follow her.
Verb
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The attack forced hundreds of migrants to seek shelter in churches and mosques, according to state broadcaster SABC.
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But the Department of Homeland Security let go a third of CISA employees in 2025 through buyouts, early retirements, forced reassignments and sweeping layoffs.
Cite this Entry
“Blackmailed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/blackmailed. Accessed 30 Jun. 2026.
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