as in domineering
fond of ordering people around
I don't want to work with him because he's so bossy and always runs roughshod over me
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Recent Examples of bossy
Giving a clear direction is different than being bossy!
—
Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 14 Feb. 2026
With the sun, Venus and Mercury moving through your bossy 10th house of career and authority this season, your work life becomes more visible and demanding.
—Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 21 Dec. 2025
Imagine the bossy, vegetal crunch of a nearly raw bell pepper.
—Adam Erace, Bon Appetit Magazine, 11 Dec. 2025
Sybil was hotelier Basil Fawlty’s acerbic and bossy wife, who argued frequently with Basil and was often the subject of his ire.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 28 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bossy
Kaitlyn Yarborough, Southern Living, 14 Feb. 2026
With the sun, Venus and Mercury moving through your bossy 10th house of career and authority this season, your work life becomes more visible and demanding.
—Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 21 Dec. 2025
Imagine the bossy, vegetal crunch of a nearly raw bell pepper.
—Adam Erace, Bon Appetit Magazine, 11 Dec. 2025
Sybil was hotelier Basil Fawlty’s acerbic and bossy wife, who argued frequently with Basil and was often the subject of his ire.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 28 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bossy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bossy
Adjective
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Through it all, however, West struggled with depression and a sense of self-loathing, and had trouble with intimacy, much of it a by-product of a hardscrabble childhood in West Virginia with a domineering father.—
Stuart Miller,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Apr. 2026
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In the new version, the dramatic tension comes from the singer’s relationship with his domineering father, Joe Jackson, who doesn’t want his son’s solo career to come at the expense of the Jackson 5, the Motown group that put the family on the map.—
Brent Lang,
Variety,
7 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Founded by George Soros after the fall of communism, the university says the authoritarian government of Viktor Orbán forced 90% of its teaching operations out of the country in 2019, leaving behind a stark symbol of how far the nation has moved during the prime minister’s 16-year regime.—
Alexander Smith,
NBC news,
11 Apr. 2026
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Reminiscent of authoritarian regimes, experts say What's branding in business is problematic in governance.—
Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy,
USA Today,
11 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Notoriously arrogant comedy legend Kent Romero might first bring to mind Chevy Chase for readers, perhaps even 1980s stars like Judge Reinhold, but with his Venezuelan-American background, he was also inspired by real-life groundbreakers like Freddie Prinze.—
Lee Kelly,
PEOPLE,
12 Apr. 2026
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As the sun and Jupiter clash, you’re cosmically protected, but arrogant behavior won’t get a pass.—
USA TODAY,
USA Today,
5 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Bossy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bossy. Accessed 19 Apr. 2026.
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