as in to undermine
to deprive of emotional or intellectual vitality
by the time of the fourth rewrite, the screenplay had pretty much been gelded of all originality
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Recent Examples of geld
By gelding a choirboy, the Church would suspend his gossamer vocal cords so that a child’s song could live on in a man’s throat, backed, crucially, by a man’s powerful lungs.
—
Dan Piepenbring, Harpers Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026
Gegen and his 12-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding One Question raced through the course in 44.686 seconds for the win.
—Karen Billing, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 May 2025
An Oldenburg gelding in the horse barn, which is paved with rubber tiles; another stall contains a 1900s French armchair, a 19th-century table, and bird prints.
—Anita Sarsidi, ELLE Decor, 1 June 2023
Because Moscow retains a close partner in this effort to geld Ukraine—a vassal state that presents the model for what Putin would like to accomplish in Ukraine: Belarus.
—Casey Michel, The New Republic, 1 Mar. 2022
See All Example Sentences for geld
Dan Piepenbring, Harpers Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026
Gegen and his 12-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding One Question raced through the course in 44.686 seconds for the win.
—Karen Billing, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 May 2025
An Oldenburg gelding in the horse barn, which is paved with rubber tiles; another stall contains a 1900s French armchair, a 19th-century table, and bird prints.
—Anita Sarsidi, ELLE Decor, 1 June 2023
Because Moscow retains a close partner in this effort to geld Ukraine—a vassal state that presents the model for what Putin would like to accomplish in Ukraine: Belarus.
—Casey Michel, The New Republic, 1 Mar. 2022
See All Example Sentences for geld
Recent Examples of Synonyms for geld
Verb
-
Treating speech like violence undermines a free society.—
Editorial Board,
Washington Post,
1 June 2026
-
Spain’s success over the past five years has undermined many long-standing political-economic truisms.—
Rogé Karma,
The Atlantic,
1 June 2026
Verb
-
Under colonial rule hijras were accused of acting as male prostitutes and of kidnapping and castrating children to grow their community.—
Charles Preston,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
28 May 2026
-
If the very successful 25-year-old Coward had been caught with a man, he could have been jailed or chemically castrated.—
Sara Holdren,
Vulture,
20 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The Reserve Bank of Australia will likely focus on the strength of private demand before factoring in the conflict, alongside inflation risks stemming from weak productivity and rising unit labor costs, according to Stenner, who expects household consumption to weaken in the second quarter.—
Anniek Bao,
CNBC,
3 June 2026
-
Critics counter that scarcity alone does not guarantee value if investor demand weakens.—
Sharon Wu,
USA Today,
2 June 2026
Verb
-
Surround the plants with well-draining soil.—
Blythe Copeland,
Martha Stewart,
4 June 2026
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Without the ability to point its solar arrays toward the Sun, the tumbling spacecraft likely drained its batteries within hours.—
Stephen Clark,
ArsTechnica,
4 June 2026
Verb
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Jurors exhausted after emotional trial Jurors appeared emotionally exhausted after the verdict.—
Jennifer McLogan,
CBS News,
4 June 2026
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Without any changes, that retirement trust fund will be exhausted in 2032, according to the the Social Security Trustees.—
Medora Lee,
USA Today,
3 June 2026
Verb
-
Mark, on a skateboard, and Jacob, also wearing inline skates, followed a little more than an arm’s length behind.—
Richard Winton,
Los Angeles Times,
2 June 2026
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There’s a similar amount of personality within Hadspen House, where a Roman bust wears a necklace of seashells and a snug room is decorated in the colors of the croquet set outside on the lawn.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
2 June 2026
Verb
-
The first film follows a group of French high-school students who travel to Naples on a school trip to discover the ruins of Pompeii and the bodies petrified by Vesuvius.—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
20 May 2026
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Johansson plays her with a tough edge to match her Queens accent, but Hester is clearly petrified by this perfect storm of ugly events.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
16 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Geld.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/geld. Accessed 6 Jun. 2026.
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