as in cowed
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variants
or browbeat
as in intimidated
to make timid or fearful by or as if by threats
they would often browbeat the younger child until he cried
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of browbeaten
Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 22 Jan. 2026
Not to the extent that the user is necessarily being browbeaten.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 1 Sep. 2025
Christopher Tayler, Harpers Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026
The administration’s apparent plan to resolve this difficulty is to shame or browbeat members of the artistic community into performing there.
—Jonathan Chait, The Atlantic, 30 Dec. 2025
Not to mention the relentless White House campaign to browbeat Fed Chair Jerome Powell to lower rates while auditioning dovish successors.
—Michael Santoli, CNBC, 16 Aug. 2025
Some of them used that stage to browbeat Democratic politicians.
—David Weigel, semafor.com, 11 Aug. 2025
But analysts have said Trump’s aggressive campaign to browbeat Powell into backing rate cuts could jeopardize the Fed’s autonomy and unnerve markets.
—Paul Davidson, USA Today, 8 Aug. 2025
Adjective
Audiences who endured the Miramax era have been browbeaten to believe that the best picture Oscar should go to a period piece that chokes out a sob from audiences.
—Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 22 Jan. 2026
Not to the extent that the user is necessarily being browbeaten.
—Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 1 Sep. 2025
Verb
Davies more or less browbeat her into terminating the pregnancy, and dropped out of college.
—Christopher Tayler, Harpers Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026
The administration’s apparent plan to resolve this difficulty is to shame or browbeat members of the artistic community into performing there.
—Jonathan Chait, The Atlantic, 30 Dec. 2025
Not to mention the relentless White House campaign to browbeat Fed Chair Jerome Powell to lower rates while auditioning dovish successors.
—Michael Santoli, CNBC, 16 Aug. 2025
Some of them used that stage to browbeat Democratic politicians.
—David Weigel, semafor.com, 11 Aug. 2025
But analysts have said Trump’s aggressive campaign to browbeat Powell into backing rate cuts could jeopardize the Fed’s autonomy and unnerve markets.
—Paul Davidson, USA Today, 8 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for browbeaten
Verb
-
He was less intimidated by its befuddling organization and had grown accustomed to the antiquated spellings and the nearly illegible, unpunctuated scribblings of harried seventeenth-century officials.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 Jan. 2026
-
The proliferation of novel cognitive frameworks through social media, as well as the election of corrupt and lawless people to high office, has intimidated the old elites into hastily reevaluating what is appropriate.—
Sean Williams,
Harpers Magazine,
27 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Any oppressed people find outlets in humor.—
Damon Wise,
Deadline,
14 Jan. 2026
-
In 2017, a Radio Free Asia reporter named Shohret Hoshur broke the story that the Chinese government was holding members of the fiercely oppressed Uyghur minority in concentration camps in Xinjiang.—
Dexter Filkins,
New Yorker,
12 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Despite their efforts to reunite her with her siblings on the lake, she was rejected and bullied, and eventually taken in by Marshall and his wife, PJ.—
Ryan Gillespie,
The Orlando Sentinel,
24 Jan. 2026
-
Taylor’s reinvention story has always been driven by a belief in her artistry and a refusal to be bullied or controlled by those with legal paper rights to her catalogue but no rights to her talent.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
21 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Wonder if there's a former Alabama defensive coach looking to be a coordinator for a downtrodden NFC East franchise.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
8 Jan. 2026
-
Before diving into season 2, why not reacquaint yourself with The Pitt's heroic (and downtrodden) team?—
Randall Colburn,
Entertainment Weekly,
8 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
And my father—lovable but imposing, a strapping six feet three inches tall with a thick, bristly mustache and a rumbling Sergeant Schultz accent that frightened my friends half to death—loved to tell stories.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
5 Dec. 2025
-
Fortune had reported in its investigation that people within the agency were frightened of examining Boring Company after two staffers who worked on the case had been disciplined.—
Jessica Mathews,
Fortune,
20 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Prepare an Easy Pasta Sauce Combine a large can of crushed tomatoes, a large can of tomato paste, and a few tablespoons of this seasoning blend.—
Libby Monteith Minor,
Southern Living,
11 Jan. 2026
-
Add some crunch with crushed tortilla chips.—
Jenn Harris,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Last summer, Noemi Rios of Dallas started the grassroots organization Vecinos Unidos to advise immigrants of their rights and to identify people who may be confused by or scared of the system.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
24 Jan. 2026
-
What really scared me was telling my audience.—
SELF Staff,
SELF,
9 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
As their love story unfolded on a national stage, the intense fame and media attention that came along with it threatened to rip them apart.—
Rosy Cordero,
Deadline,
26 Jan. 2026
-
Trump earlier had threatened military action if Iran carried out mass executions of prisoners or killed peaceful demonstrators during a crackdown on protests that began in late December.—
Konstantin Toropin,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Browbeaten.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/browbeaten. Accessed 28 Jan. 2026.
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