1
as in attack dog
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2
as in wordmonger
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Recent Examples of hatchet man
The hatchet man, of course, was John Howard Lawson, and his boss was a man named V.J. Jerome [the Communist Party USA’s longtime cultural commissar].
—
Seth Abramovitch, HollywoodReporter, 20 May 2026
The thinking around Washington was that Jon Husted, who was put in his seat after J.D. Vance left it to become Trump’s right-hand hatchet man, would be a responsible custodian who could coast through this November’s special election to finish out the balance of Vance’s term.
—Philip Elliott, Time, 20 Apr. 2026
While he was sent by the White House to be a hatchet man, Oz, a cardiothoracic surgeon, should use a scalpel with care, conducting a real, legitimate probe that seeks ways to save money for taxpayers and improve outcomes for patients.
—New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 13 Mar. 2026
In 2010, the duo separated, going opposite directions; Malice sought repentance through the church while Pusha became a hatchet man for Kanye West.
—Richard Brody, New Yorker, 19 Dec. 2025
Arthur is known as Conkling’s hatchet man, a customs collector for the Port of New York who’s shown, in one amusing snippet, presiding over the beating of a noncompliant businessman.
—Scott Tobias, Vulture, 6 Nov. 2025
The White House and its hatchet men attacking culture are coming for the artists, curators, museum directors, docents, writers, and editors who value freedom and liberation and Black history and women’s history and ideas and progress.
—Chadd Scott, Forbes.com, 28 Mar. 2025
Musk’s extracurricular gig as President Donald Trump’s hatchet man has turned the Tesla brand — once a favorite among upwardly mobile lefties — into a symbol of America’s right wing.
—Allison Morrow, CNN, 25 Mar. 2025
Back home, more pink slips for federal employees go out and the scrutiny of Elon Musk's role as the hatchet man for those agencies intensifies.
—CBS News, 16 Feb. 2025
Seth Abramovitch, HollywoodReporter, 20 May 2026
The thinking around Washington was that Jon Husted, who was put in his seat after J.D. Vance left it to become Trump’s right-hand hatchet man, would be a responsible custodian who could coast through this November’s special election to finish out the balance of Vance’s term.
—Philip Elliott, Time, 20 Apr. 2026
While he was sent by the White House to be a hatchet man, Oz, a cardiothoracic surgeon, should use a scalpel with care, conducting a real, legitimate probe that seeks ways to save money for taxpayers and improve outcomes for patients.
—New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 13 Mar. 2026
In 2010, the duo separated, going opposite directions; Malice sought repentance through the church while Pusha became a hatchet man for Kanye West.
—Richard Brody, New Yorker, 19 Dec. 2025
Arthur is known as Conkling’s hatchet man, a customs collector for the Port of New York who’s shown, in one amusing snippet, presiding over the beating of a noncompliant businessman.
—Scott Tobias, Vulture, 6 Nov. 2025
The White House and its hatchet men attacking culture are coming for the artists, curators, museum directors, docents, writers, and editors who value freedom and liberation and Black history and women’s history and ideas and progress.
—Chadd Scott, Forbes.com, 28 Mar. 2025
Musk’s extracurricular gig as President Donald Trump’s hatchet man has turned the Tesla brand — once a favorite among upwardly mobile lefties — into a symbol of America’s right wing.
—Allison Morrow, CNN, 25 Mar. 2025
Back home, more pink slips for federal employees go out and the scrutiny of Elon Musk's role as the hatchet man for those agencies intensifies.
—CBS News, 16 Feb. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hatchet man
Noun
-
After Trump won, Giuliani continued as his attack dog, even traveling to Ukraine to seek damaging information about Biden’s son Hunter.—
Michael R. Sisak,
Los Angeles Times,
4 May 2026
-
After Trump won, Giuliani continued as his attack dog, even traveling to Ukraine to seek damaging information about Biden’s son, Hunter.—
Michael R. Sisak,
Fortune,
4 May 2026
Noun
-
In addition to money problems, McNamara also faced hardship when his pit bull, Boo, was diagnosed with cancer, which required costly treatments.—
Virginia Chamlee,
PEOPLE,
27 May 2026
-
Some crew members went to investigate, and found a pit bull tied to the station’s flagpole.—
Harriet Ramos,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
20 May 2026
Noun
-
Joe Biden sued the Justice Department on Tuesday in an effort to block the release of audio recordings and transcripts of the former president’s interview with a ghostwriter that were obtained by the special counsel who investigated his handling of classified documents.—
Alanna Durkin Richer,
Los Angeles Times,
28 May 2026
-
Joe Biden sued the DOJ to block the release of audio recordings and transcripts of conversations with the ghostwriter of his 2017 memoir.—
Elizabeth Robinson,
NBC news,
27 May 2026
Noun
-
As his fans cheered and shouted, a girl dressed in a tiger costume popped out of the sunroof of a passing car.—
Sofia Saric,
Miami Herald,
31 May 2026
-
There may be different types of sharks showing up, such as tiger, bull sharks and smooth hammerheads, Lowe said.—
Laylan Connelly,
Oc Register,
30 May 2026
Noun
-
Powering the portable scribbler is 1.7-GHz dual-core processing supported by 2 GB of RAM and 64 GB of internal storage.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
8 Sep. 2025
-
All remaining scribblers should lay down their squibs and come out, squinting, arms aloft in surrender.—
Jayson Greene,
Time,
17 June 2025
Noun
-
That would point to a hack of a third-party platform that had access to the movie, which cost Paramount tens of millions of dollars to produce.—
Winston Cho,
HollywoodReporter,
4 June 2026
-
This hack has been quietly circulating among frequent flyers for years, but many casual flyers don't know that many economy-class aisle or middle-seat armrests feature a lever or button near the hinge; slide your finger underneath and press or pull to release the lock.—
Alesandra Dubin,
Southern Living,
4 June 2026
Noun
-
Romano’s sturdy book may not stint on examples of Mary’s bad behavior—including a ferociously jealous verbal assault, near the end of the war, on the wife of a prominent Union general—but the biographer keeps tilting against those who slighted Mary in even the most superficial ways.—
Thomas Mallon,
New Yorker,
18 May 2026
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While Goodman’s paradoxes and fantasies posed challenges to me as her biographer, with the advent of AI slop and ChatGPT, our courtship with illusion (and possibly delusion) is here to stay.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
13 May 2026
Noun
-
At least one of his cowriter nominees, Mehdi Mahmoudian, was unable to leave Iran to attend Sunday’s awards.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
15 Mar. 2026
-
Zamiri and Aitchison worked closely with cowriter Bertie Brandes to crack the movie, which chronicles a dramatic shift for Charli as an artist, as people start to see her in a different light.—
Patrick Ryan,
USA Today,
4 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Hatchet man.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hatchet%20man. Accessed 7 Jun. 2026.
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