as in batons
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
Relevance
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of cudgels
Ian Buruma, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2025
While the conservative pushback and Trump’s cudgels are encouraging some companies to abandon formal DEI policies, analysts say an emphasis on diversity continues and is quietly evolving beneath the surface.
—William Becker, The Hill, 11 Aug. 2025
Major events, like football games, are often used as cudgels to force a deal, with both the distributor and broadcaster eager to ensure the events are available to subscribers.
—Alex Weprin, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Noun
When words lose their original meanings and are repurposed as verbal cudgels, the public sphere becomes a jungle of denunciation, intimidation, and even violence.
—Ian Buruma, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2025
While the conservative pushback and Trump’s cudgels are encouraging some companies to abandon formal DEI policies, analysts say an emphasis on diversity continues and is quietly evolving beneath the surface.
—William Becker, The Hill, 11 Aug. 2025
Major events, like football games, are often used as cudgels to force a deal, with both the distributor and broadcaster eager to ensure the events are available to subscribers.
—Alex Weprin, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cudgels
Noun
-
According to those reports, during her arrest in December, she was beaten repeatedly with wooden sticks and batons and dragged across the ground by her hair, sustaining injuries that left open wounds on her head.—
Jomana Karadsheh,
CNN Money,
11 Feb. 2026
-
Federal officers wielded batons and deployed flash-bang devices against the crowd.—
Jack Brook,
Los Angeles Times,
24 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The proposal chops $150 million from the Developmental Disabilities Administration, which battled against the largest budget cut in last year's negotiations.—
JT Moodee Lockman,
CBS News,
21 Jan. 2026
-
And then the council comes along and chops it off.—
David Treuer,
The Atlantic,
13 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Some guests will be elderly with walkers and canes.—
Kailyn Brown,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Feb. 2026
-
Grape vines are the most productive when they're pruned back to about 10 to 12 canes with just 4 to 5 buds each.—
Lauren Landers,
Better Homes & Gardens,
4 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Then little Holly Wheeler and her 10-year-old friends, including the Season 5 favorite Derek (Jake Connelly), all swarm into the basement and take over the D&D table in a passing of the torch that basically whacks the audience over our collective heads.—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
31 Dec. 2025
-
Fed up with Nicky’s dramatics, Lester uses his elevator crank and whacks the former hard in the back of his neck.—
Rosy Cordero,
Deadline,
28 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
In addition to tops and bottoms, don’t forget to snag this pair of Merino wool socks for just $11.—
Jasmine Gomez,
Travel + Leisure,
18 Jan. 2026
-
Ten years after his expulsion, Saleh’s third feature in the trilogy, after Boy From Heaven, socks it to Egypt’s military leaders and General Intelligence Service (GIS), and by implication al-Sisi.—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
17 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Nick Phillips, with Applied Digital, said the tax exemption ban effectively boxes out data centers from building in South Dakota.—
Makenzie Huber,
States Newsroom,
19 Feb. 2026
-
The rich Redfellows get dispatched one by one in scenes that are fun but empty — neither cathartic nor comic, simply boxes to be checked off to great big poundings of thunder and harpsichords.—
Amy Nicholson,
Los Angeles Times,
18 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Lo then bludgeons Richard in the head with a metal pipe and kills him.—
Patrick Ryan,
USA Today,
11 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Reese Atwood hammers her second double of the game and scores on a single from Vivi Martinez.—
Thomas Jones,
Austin American Statesman,
13 Feb. 2026
-
Over and over again, Cameron hammers his favorite themes.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
19 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cudgels.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cudgels. Accessed 26 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
