1
as in dread
something or someone that causes fear or dread especially without reason
communism was once the nation's biggest bugbear
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in headache
something that is a source of irritation
hated all the bugbears of modern life, especially those long commutes to work
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of bugbear
One of Trump’s biggest bugbears is the U.S. trade deficits with a number of key trading partners, including Canada and the EU.
—
Holly Ellyatt, CNBC, 12 Mar. 2025
The fiscal policy has proved to be a persistent political bugbear for Berlin, with arguments between parties over the extent to which the debt brake ensures responsible spending, or limits growth and investment.
—Holly Ellyatt, CNBC, 24 Feb. 2025
To attribute the corrosion of institutional trust to such bugbears as relativism or postmodernism is to ignore explanations that are both more concrete and more parsimonious.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, The New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2025
Kevin Lamarque | Reuters As U.S. President Donald Trump looks to immediately fix his greatest political and economic bugbears, the thorny issue of NATO defense spending is likely to quickly return to the global fore.
—Holly Ellyatt, CNBC, 23 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bugbear
Holly Ellyatt, CNBC, 12 Mar. 2025
The fiscal policy has proved to be a persistent political bugbear for Berlin, with arguments between parties over the extent to which the debt brake ensures responsible spending, or limits growth and investment.
—Holly Ellyatt, CNBC, 24 Feb. 2025
To attribute the corrosion of institutional trust to such bugbears as relativism or postmodernism is to ignore explanations that are both more concrete and more parsimonious.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, The New Yorker, 19 Feb. 2025
Kevin Lamarque | Reuters As U.S. President Donald Trump looks to immediately fix his greatest political and economic bugbears, the thorny issue of NATO defense spending is likely to quickly return to the global fore.
—Holly Ellyatt, CNBC, 23 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bugbear
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bugbear
Noun
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The fear is more like a soft surge of dread, as if my synapses had been been rewired to the thrusting strings of John Williams' famous theme.—
Tom Gliatto,
People.com,
21 June 2025
-
Few players stir such excitement in fans, and such inevitable dread in defenders, when standing over a dead ball.—
Conor O'Neill,
New York Times,
20 June 2025
Noun
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This is just the wrong place for trash fees to be charged and is pretty much guaranteed to create massive headaches for homeowners.—
Inga,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
16 June 2025
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Bringing a pet to the vet's office for an appointment can often cause owners headaches, but one woman's chaotic experience left the internet in stitches.—
Liz O'Connell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
15 June 2025
Noun
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But this week, his irons are dialed, and suddenly the golfer most famous for his short game bugaboo is in the top five almost entirely because of his incredible saves around the green.—
Brody Miller,
New York Times,
15 June 2025
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Of course, his biggest bugaboo has been his Strokes Gained: Around the Green.—
Kendall Capps,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 June 2025
Noun
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The Houthis, who are a part of Iran’s proxy network and who the regime supplies with weapons and intelligence, have been a thorn in Israel’s side since disrupting commercial shipping in the Red Sea at the start of the Israel-Hamas war in 2023.—
Zach LaChance,
The Washington Examiner,
15 June 2025
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But his days as one of five aldermen who said no to Daley’s infamous parking meter deal or a quixotic early thorn to Mayor Rahm Emanuel are long gone.—
Jake Sheridan,
Chicago Tribune,
10 June 2025
Noun
-
An American Werewolf in London' (1981) American dudes backpacking in England get attacked by a werewolf, one of them becomes a beastly nuisance on the full moon, and things get bloody freaky in old London Town.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
14 June 2025
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In the longer term, the City Council would do well to reconsider enacting a city nuisance ordinance that would punish anyone rioting, looting, obstructing the public way, disrupting traffic, physically assaulting a police officer or even publicly calling for such behavior.—
Paul Vallas,
Chicago Tribune,
11 June 2025
Noun
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By the time Jaws’s 45th anniversaries rolled around, society was locked down in the Covid pandemic’s first year, terror gripping communities worldwide.—
Mark Hughes,
Forbes.com,
21 June 2025
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Izadi had been sanctioned by the U.S. and U.K. over his ties to the Palestinian militant faction Islamic Jihad, which also helped plan the Oct. 7 terror attacks.—
Brie Stimson,
FOXNews.com,
21 June 2025
Noun
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His populist messaging and anti-establishment persona align with many voters’ frustrations with Washington, the Federal Reserve, and legacy media.—
Becca Bratcher,
Forbes.com,
16 June 2025
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Wyndham Clark’s frustration about missing the cut in the 2025 U.S. Open reportedly spilled into the locker room this week.—
Scott Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
15 June 2025
Noun
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Sailing teaches us that being an honorable competitor is more important than being a top competitor because while every race is there to lose, luck is the omnipresent hobgoblin.—
Conor Mastromarco,
Baltimore Sun,
18 Nov. 2024
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Gleeson’s Puck is a malevolent hobgoblin who serves as the royal jester to King Auberon of Faerie.—
Denise Petski,
Deadline,
2 July 2024
Cite this Entry
“Bugbear.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bugbear. Accessed 30 Jun. 2025.
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