as in bullies
to make timid or fearful by or as if by threats
refusing to be intimidated by the manager's harsh stare, I demanded my money back
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Recent Examples of intimidates
If French wine intimidates you, this is the perfect place to get over that fear.
—
Noel Burgess, Forbes.com, 22 Jan. 2026
Independent groups like Human Rights Watch say the Venezuelan government intimidates human rights advocates, arrests and detains protesters and harasses journalists.
—Syra Ortiz Blanes, Miami Herald, 14 Jan. 2026
Before his luck runs out, Robert is saved by a very pissed off Blonde Blazer, who intimidates Shroud’s crew with the bluff of backup, or at least killing half the gang.
—Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 13 Nov. 2025
Noel Burgess, Forbes.com, 22 Jan. 2026
Independent groups like Human Rights Watch say the Venezuelan government intimidates human rights advocates, arrests and detains protesters and harasses journalists.
—Syra Ortiz Blanes, Miami Herald, 14 Jan. 2026
Before his luck runs out, Robert is saved by a very pissed off Blonde Blazer, who intimidates Shroud’s crew with the bluff of backup, or at least killing half the gang.
—Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 13 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for intimidates
Verb
-
Collective action deters bullies Harvard never stood alone.—
Jeffrey Sonnenfeld,
Fortune,
1 Feb. 2026
-
There’s always a mean kid in your class who bullies everybody else.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Like the 1987 Kurt Vonnegut novel from which the restaurant took its name, Bluebeard encourages guests to drop their guard, surround themselves with other people and try something that frightens them a little.—
USA TODAY NETWORK,
USA Today,
11 Feb. 2026
-
Her hysteria frightens me and demands to be taken care of.—
Stephanie Sengwe,
PEOPLE,
28 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The boiling bin freezing especially scares me.—
Emily Elias,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
18 Feb. 2026
-
So, anything that seems random or unexpected scares them.—
Michelle Mastro,
Martha Stewart,
15 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The project, which Steinberger has rebranded multiple times—evolving from Clawdbot to Moltbot and finally to OpenClaw—largely owing to politics—has expanded at a pace that startles even seasoned AI experts.—
Eva Roytburg,
Fortune,
19 Feb. 2026
-
As the dolphin gets closer to the glass, the Chihuahua lets out a bark that startles the dolphin, who then starts mimicking the dog's mouth movements in a sort of chasing game across species.—
Maria Azzurra Volpe,
MSNBC Newsweek,
18 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
However, the rotation of this filament clearly dominates how the galaxies within it spin, perhaps by funneling hydrogen gas along the dark-matter filament and onto the galaxies in a way that coerces their spin while providing further fuel for star formation.—
Keith Cooper,
Space.com,
4 Dec. 2025
-
Haunted by the suspicious death of his ailing mother, Ali, a university professor, coerces his enigmatic gardener to execute a cold-blooded act of vengeance.—
Jill Goldsmith,
Deadline,
14 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Intimidates.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/intimidates. Accessed 22 Feb. 2026.
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