1
as in fairy
an imaginary being usually having a small human form and magical powers
in Shakespeare's Midsummer Night's Dream, Puck is a hobgoblin who plays pranks such as spoiling milk and tripping old ladies
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2
as in dread
something or someone that causes fear or dread especially without reason
the fear of success and the pressures that come with it can be more of a hobgoblin than the possibility of failure
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of hobgoblin
Consistency is the hobgoblin of large language models.
—
Brianne Kane, Scientific American, 29 Sep. 2023
While the community might celebrate the hobgoblin’s induction into Detroit culture, Detroiters must always keep watch for when the Nain Rouge returns and provokes disaster.
—Kylie Martin, Detroit Free Press, 8 Aug. 2023
The narrative unfolds communally around a table, with plenty of backtracking, retconning, and joking—and avoiding the small-minded hobgoblins of consistency and rules-lawyering.
—Ethan Gilsdorf, WIRED, 27 June 2023
Powell & Co are now eyeing consumer service prices as the latest hobgoblin to hound.
—Gary Drenik, Forbes, 19 Dec. 2022
See All Example Sentences for hobgoblin
Brianne Kane, Scientific American, 29 Sep. 2023
While the community might celebrate the hobgoblin’s induction into Detroit culture, Detroiters must always keep watch for when the Nain Rouge returns and provokes disaster.
—Kylie Martin, Detroit Free Press, 8 Aug. 2023
The narrative unfolds communally around a table, with plenty of backtracking, retconning, and joking—and avoiding the small-minded hobgoblins of consistency and rules-lawyering.
—Ethan Gilsdorf, WIRED, 27 June 2023
Powell & Co are now eyeing consumer service prices as the latest hobgoblin to hound.
—Gary Drenik, Forbes, 19 Dec. 2022
See All Example Sentences for hobgoblin
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hobgoblin
Noun
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Boom!, the semi-autobiographical musical from Rent creator Jonathan Larson, as a hungry young composer racing toward his 30th birthday with more than a note of dread.—
Sara Netzley,
EW.com,
7 May 2025
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Developing Greater Self-Awareness Identifying behavioral signs of anxiety — such as physical restlessness, changes in eating habits or a sense of dread — may provide useful insights.—
Diane Winiarski,
Forbes.com,
1 May 2025
Noun
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Meanwhile, as friendships across the kingdoms are strained by the ripple effects of the Dark Lord’s actions, the forces of good — elves, dwarves, men, Harfoots and a wizard named Gandalf (Weyman) — try to valiantly hold on to what matters to them most of all: each other.—
Destiny Jackson,
Deadline,
8 May 2025
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Photograph: Ying Tang/Getty Images While children are told stories about elves and reindeer, the truth is that hundreds of thousands of people work year-round to make sure Christmas feels magical.—
Zeyi Yang,
Wired News,
28 Apr. 2025
Noun
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From its protrusible jaw to its ability to hunt in every environment, the goblin shark exemplifies adaptation to the extremes.—
Scott Travers,
Forbes,
30 Dec. 2024
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Thousands of visitors showed up dressed as their favorite characters from all parts of pop culture — superheroes and supervillains, wizards, elves, goblins, animals, Ghostbusters, Jedi and Sith, who all are calling Kansas City home base from Friday, March 21, to Sunday, March 23.—
Joseph Hernandez,
Kansas City Star,
22 Mar. 2025
Noun
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But the famous DreamWorks ogre almost had a very different voice, with Myers' fellow Saturday Night Live alum Chris Farley originally attached.—
EW Staff,
EW.com,
18 May 2025
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This greenish hue earned the fossil the nickname Fiona, like the ogre from Shrek.—
Discover Magazine,
Discover Magazine,
13 May 2025
Noun
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Tell me a little bit about the technical side of filming a dwarf and an elf together.—
Devan Coggan,
EW.com,
13 Oct. 2022
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Other new characters include Disa, the first female dwarf ever shown in the Lord of the Rings series.—
Ethan Millman,
Rolling Stone,
22 July 2022
Noun
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One of Trump’s longstanding bugbears has been America’s trade deficits with its neighbors and competitors including Canada, China, Mexico and the European Union.—
Holly Ellyatt,
CNBC,
3 Apr. 2025
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Kuo also said the iPhone Fold, as it likely won’t be called, will address the biggest bugbear for folders: a too-visible crease in the internal display when it’s opened.—
David Phelan,
Forbes.com,
29 Mar. 2025
Noun
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If that’s true, then the rate of growth of AI startups should be striking terror into corporate board rooms around the world.—
Andrew Binns,
Forbes.com,
16 May 2025
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At least one of the young suspects who have been robbing cabbies since January was arrested, but then released from court without bail, angering taxi advocates, who are demanding prosecutors take a stronger stance against these teen terrors.—
Sheetal Banchariya,
New York Daily News,
15 May 2025
Noun
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For instance, people used to hang iron on their doors at night to keep faeries and demons out of their homes (talismans) and a knock on the door in the middle of the night was to be ignored, for surely some evil spirit was lurking outside.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes,
27 Nov. 2024
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The Unseelie Court is the bastion of malevolent faeries who harm humans for their amusement or to exact revenge.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes,
27 Nov. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Hobgoblin.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hobgoblin. Accessed 23 May. 2025.
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