as in cane
a heavy rigid stick used as a weapon or for punishment
a farmer armed with a cudgel drove us off his land
Synonyms & Similar Words
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as in to bludgeon
Related Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of cudgel
Jc Hallman, Oklahoma Watch, 22 Mar. 2026
As Californians look toward the 2026 governor’s race, candidates on both sides of the aisle are once again wielding crime as a political cudgel.
—Jose Bernal, Oc Register, 24 Feb. 2026
Timothy Ryback, TIME, 26 Apr. 2024
Before long, fairs had such attractions as cudgelling bouts, bearbaiting, and something called gouging.
—Zach Helfand, The New Yorker, 14 Aug. 2023
See All Example Sentences for cudgel
Noun
That blast and another nearby killed 13 Americans and hundreds of Afghans; the bombings became a political cudgel and a violent symbol of the messy end of the longest war in American history.
—Jc Hallman, Oklahoma Watch, 22 Mar. 2026
As Californians look toward the 2026 governor’s race, candidates on both sides of the aisle are once again wielding crime as a political cudgel.
—Jose Bernal, Oc Register, 24 Feb. 2026
Verb
Hitler exploited his 37% to gridlock legislative processes, to cudgel or crush the political opposition, and ultimately to undermine the country’s democratic structures.
—Timothy Ryback, TIME, 26 Apr. 2024
Before long, fairs had such attractions as cudgelling bouts, bearbaiting, and something called gouging.
—Zach Helfand, The New Yorker, 14 Aug. 2023
See All Example Sentences for cudgel
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cudgel
Noun
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Brown suffered cuts and a black eye in addition to leg injures that resulted in permanent scarring and requires him to walk with a cane, his lawyers say.—
Sheetal Banchariya,
New York Daily News,
28 Apr. 2026
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Dancer Jessica Rabanzo-Flores, dressed in a brown suit jacket and representing McCullers, approached the stage with a cane before joining company dancers who performed the gravity-defying balancing acts that reflect Malashock’s choreographic style.—
Marcia Luttrell,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
26 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Authorities say Pamela Austin was found bludgeoned and stabbed to death, and Michael Austin appeared dead from a manner of suicide.—
Nate Gartrell,
Mercury News,
19 Apr. 2026
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Throughout Season 51, sketches have buckled under dragging runtimes, one-note jokes bludgeoned to death and facile concepts; earlier this year, another first time host, Teyana Taylor, was similarly let down by sketches that couldn’t match her depth and range as a performer.—
Natalie Oganesyan,
Deadline,
11 Apr. 2026
Noun
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The Marsies who resist arrest are doing so without batons, skull-protecting helmets, and guns containing, technically, nonlethal rounds.—
Sophie Brookover,
Vulture,
24 Apr. 2026
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The complaint stated that officers unleashed a torrent of pepper spray, tear gas grenades, rubber bullets and baton strikes, despite the women posing no threat and complying with officers’ orders.—
William Melhado,
Sacbee.com,
24 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The 'merch hauls' on social media are awful, the desperate pathetic influencers trying to clout chase using the Masters are all awful.—
Kait Hanson,
Southern Living,
13 Apr. 2026
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But they are outnumbered by propagandists, trolls, anxious commentators, war-market gamblers, and clout chasers who, apparently, became experts on the Strait of Hormuz overnight.—
Charlie Warzel,
The Atlantic,
14 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Meanwhile, Ukraine has been assailing oil terminals and refineries deep inside Russia with long-range drones and missiles, aiming to disrupt Moscow’s economy.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
27 Apr. 2026
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The incident has raised suspicions here of a much broader involvement in Mexico by the CIA, an agency long assailed in Latin America because of its decades-long involvement in coups, assassination attempts and other undercover actions.—
Kate Linthicum,
Los Angeles Times,
23 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Grind the orange peels or very finely chop them up.—
Michelle Mastro,
Martha Stewart,
25 Apr. 2026
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Finely chop them and use them alongside the leaves.—
Karla Walsh,
Better Homes & Gardens,
24 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The Met Gala lands smack in the middle of that window, on Monday, May 4 — its traditional first-Monday-in-May slot.—
Hanna Wickes,
Miami Herald,
29 Apr. 2026
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The boy smacks him in the mouth and then immediately starts crying.—
Samantha Agate,
Charlotte Observer,
28 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Eventually, Deckinga had up to 10 accounts, as the social media service attempted to play whack-a-mole.—
Meredith Colias-Pete,
Chicago Tribune,
24 Apr. 2026
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But, really, just being on the island feels like meditative wellness, including taking a golf club and a biodegradable ball from the island shop and whacking it into the sea.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
23 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Cudgel.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cudgel. Accessed 4 May. 2026.
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