as in to convince
to cause (someone) to think or believe something by using methods that make a person unable to think normally
Terrorists brainwashed the prisoners. Does advertising brainwash children?
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Recent Examples of brainwash
Harry and William had a 72-hour argument via text in which William accused Harry of being brainwashed by therapy and Harry appealed unsuccessfully for William to join him for a session.
—
Jack Royston, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Sep. 2025
The movie, a satire of the fashion industry, follows his male model character Derek Zoolander as the villainous mogul Jacobim Mugatu (Will Ferrell) attempts to brainwash Derek into assassinating the prime minister of Malaysia.
—Tommy McArdle, People.com, 18 Aug. 2025
How could someone as young as Sisson already be brainwashed by big-money interests?
—Brady Brickner-Wood, New Yorker, 13 Aug. 2025
Justine and Archer eventually overpower and kill the pair, all while Alex is trying to hide from his parents, who are brainwashed into trying to kill him.
—William Earl, Variety, 9 Aug. 2025
Jack Royston, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Sep. 2025
The movie, a satire of the fashion industry, follows his male model character Derek Zoolander as the villainous mogul Jacobim Mugatu (Will Ferrell) attempts to brainwash Derek into assassinating the prime minister of Malaysia.
—Tommy McArdle, People.com, 18 Aug. 2025
How could someone as young as Sisson already be brainwashed by big-money interests?
—Brady Brickner-Wood, New Yorker, 13 Aug. 2025
Justine and Archer eventually overpower and kill the pair, all while Alex is trying to hide from his parents, who are brainwashed into trying to kill him.
—William Earl, Variety, 9 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for brainwash
Verb
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Despite their mass use, Manuylov hopes to convince various associations and research boards to conduct comparative field tests of the classic methods versus his own.—
Maria Williams,
USA Today,
12 Sep. 2025
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Ciara recently opened up about a time her husband, Russell Wilson, convinced a teenager with leukemia to stick with his treatment, an act that wound up changing his story from coming to an end.—
Regina Cho,
VIBE.com,
12 Sep. 2025
Verb
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But much like Howard Jarvis feared, the tax-and-spend interests have sought to destroy Proposition 13 ever since, most recently by persuading courts to carve loopholes in its constitutional protections and invent new ways for government agencies to raise revenue.—
Jon Coupal,
Oc Register,
7 Sep. 2025
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Elizabeth Stage, whose Oakland hills home barely escaped the deadly 1991 firestorm, and whose work as president of the Oakland FireSafe Council involves persuading residents to adopt Zone 0 measures, said the study would be a helpful, persuasive tool.—
Ethan Baron,
Mercury News,
7 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The anxiety-inducing thought of being left alone often causes dogs to plead with their owners.—
Liz O'Connell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
8 Sep. 2025
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This typically leads to interconnected debt arrangements such that a default by a key market participant induces a cascade of defaults by other participants whose ability to cover their own debt obligations relied on parties who have defaulted.—
Hersh Shefrin,
Forbes.com,
8 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Well, a new Netflix documentary about Charlie Sheen brings that up, as well as all his other infamous shenanigans.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
13 Sep. 2025
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The work could bring frequency combs out of specialized labs and into integrated photonic devices.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
13 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Convertibles are more expensive, often attracting older drivers with more income — and generally, more caution behind the wheel.—
Josh Max,
Forbes.com,
13 Sep. 2025
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Public figures, academics and everyday business owners have faced consequences for comments and social media posts that contained celebrations or other musings that attracted swift condemnation.—
Julia Gomez,
USA Today,
13 Sep. 2025
Verb
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There are tons of enticing cold and hot drinks.—
Michael Deeds,
Idaho Statesman,
9 Sep. 2025
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Responding to the demand, and hoping to entice younger shoppers into their financial ecosystems, payment facilitators such as Cash App, the BNPL provider Klarna, the fintech bank Chime, and even American Express have recently launched their own debit cards.—
Michael Waters,
The Atlantic,
9 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Her pieces consisted of geometric tops influenced by flowers’ natural designs and also modernized micro shorts.—
Robyn Mowatt,
Essence,
12 Sep. 2025
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The efficiency and immediacy of space medicine may well influence healthcare innovation far beyond orbit, inspiring systems that are faster, cheaper, and more accessible.—
Bernard Marr,
Forbes.com,
12 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The average vehicle sells for nearly $50,000 and almost 20% of new car buyers are paying $1,000 or more a month, the report said.—
Betty Lin-Fisher,
USA Today,
11 Sep. 2025
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In the current challenging environment, while GPs are selling assets cheaply or not at all, most LPs are focused on buying and selling baskets of secondaries.—
Control Risks,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Brainwash.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/brainwash. Accessed 15 Sep. 2025.
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