as in browbeating
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as in intimidating
to make timid or fearful by or as if by threats
the judge warned the attorney that hectoring the witness with aggressive questioning would not be allowed
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Recent Examples of hectoring
Greg Evans, Deadline, 31 Dec. 2025
Sure, there's the hectoring of Federal Reserve officials, Chairman Jerome Powell and Governor Lisa Cook, and the attempt by the president to make the central bank another appendage of the White House.
—Jim Cramer, CNBC, 18 Sep. 2025
Michael Scherer, The Atlantic, 7 Jan. 2026
Noun
Imagine if Clooney had chosen to use his star power to spotlight a genuinely worthy project — the way, say, Sarah Paulson did with Appropriate or Keanu Reeves is doing with Waiting For Godot — rather than the stuffy, moribund, on-the-nose hectoring that was Good Night, and Good Luck?
—Greg Evans, Deadline, 31 Dec. 2025
Sure, there's the hectoring of Federal Reserve officials, Chairman Jerome Powell and Governor Lisa Cook, and the attempt by the president to make the central bank another appendage of the White House.
—Jim Cramer, CNBC, 18 Sep. 2025
Verb
One senior official who has participated in the calls told us that the intensity and urgency often veer into hectoring.
—Michael Scherer, The Atlantic, 7 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hectoring
Verb
-
The man arrested for Tuesday’s attack, Anthony Kazmierczak, faces a charge of forcibly assaulting, opposing, impeding and intimidating Omar, according to a complaint filed in federal court.—
Alanna Durkin Richer,
Fortune,
29 Jan. 2026
-
On the 2025 framing case, the jury found Scott guilty of misappropriating a person's identity to harm reputation and of intimidating a witness, but not guilty of two counts of bail jumping.—
Kelli Arseneau,
jsonline.com,
29 Jan. 2026
Noun
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This was the context in which Bondi sent her bullying letter to Walz on Saturday.—
Quinta Jurecic,
The Atlantic,
28 Jan. 2026
-
Brown declined to participate in the press tour for the final season of Queer Eye for the Straight Guy after reportedly enduring years of a hostile work environment and workplace bullying.—
Essence,
Essence,
26 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Analysts have suggested a vote from Waller in favor of interest rate cuts, aligning with the president’s browbeating demands for lower borrowing costs—could be seen as a bellwether for his candidacy.—
Eva Roytburg,
Fortune,
28 Jan. 2026
-
This might take a series of browbeating prompts, but that’s not a big deal.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
18 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
As a winter storm bore down on Austin late last week, residents braced for an onslaught of ice — and, many feared, ICE enforcement in the city.—
Emiliano Tahui Gómez,
Austin American Statesman,
27 Jan. 2026
-
After Nicola Peltz & Brooklyn Beckham’s wedding, there was an onslaught of rumors that Victoria Beckham had beef with her daughter-in-law because of the poor planning.—
Lea Veloso,
StyleCaster,
26 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Democrats see the threat of DHS shuttering in two weeks as leverage in negotiations, given that the department also oversees the Coast Guard and emergency response to natural disasters.—
David Sivak,
The Washington Examiner,
31 Jan. 2026
-
Lemon was charged with conspiring to violate someone’s constitutional rights and violating the FACE Act, which prohibits the use of force or threats to intentionally interfere with someone expressing their First Amendment right to religion.—
Elizabeth Wolfe,
CNN Money,
31 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
This fact is why the tax- and fee-hike frenzy of the past year won’t ebb any time soon.—
U T Editorial Board,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
31 Jan. 2026
-
In an age when polarized politics have whipped extremists into a frenzy and disagreeing with someone’s views justifies physical assault among fringe elements, the assault on Omar is a new abysmal milestone of societal degradation.—
Boston Herald editorial staff,
Boston Herald,
29 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Daniel Acker | Bloomberg | Getty Images One popular narrative is that retail investors who joined the GameStop phenomenon did so as a revolt against Wall Street.—
Greg Iacurci,
CNBC,
29 Jan. 2026
-
The former Democratic senator from Montana compared the current political atmosphere to the year the party picked up 12 Senate seats and the White House thanks to a Depression-era revolt against Republicans.—
Burgess Everett,
semafor.com,
28 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
The changes to and cancellation of courses comes months after a viral video of a student confronting an instructor over her lessons threw Texas A&M, one of the largest universities in the country, into upheaval.—
Juan A. Lozano,
Fortune,
31 Jan. 2026
-
The junior point guard loves to throw caution to the wind and insert himself right into the middle of the action, causing upheaval for the opposing team while leaving no stone turned.—
Patrick Z. McGavin,
Chicago Tribune,
31 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Hectoring.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hectoring. Accessed 4 Feb. 2026.
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