as in jackbooted
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Recent Examples of Synonyms for ironfisted
Adjective
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Cooper was obsessed with the New World Order and the actions of jackbooted government enforcers against the Branch Davidians in Waco, Texas, and white separatist Randy Weaver at Ruby Ridge, Idaho.—
Andrew Stuttaford,
WSJ,
19 Sep. 2018 -
Hungary under his rule is far from a jackbooted dictatorship, but its democracy is diverging markedly from that of many of its partners in the European Union.—
Ishaan Tharoor,
Washington Post,
6 Apr. 2018
Adjective
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Since seizing control of Afghanistan in August 2021, the group has implemented a string of oppressive measures against women and girls, even cracking down on the sound of women’s voices in public.—
Catherine Nicholls,
CNN Money,
8 July 2025
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Others reject the portrayal of federal actions as oppressive, suggesting deployments like those in Los Angeles prioritize national security and immigration enforcement.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
4 July 2025
Adjective
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Buried under heavy-handed shots of children awaiting Superman's salvation, scientifically opaque explanations of a pocket universe, and an ensemble of characters large enough to populate a Kansas small town, there are flickers of a good, maybe even great, movie.—
Maureen Lee Lenker,
EW.com,
8 July 2025
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However, in the second season, the directors began getting heavy-handed with their notes for her.—
Taijuan Moorman,
USA Today,
4 July 2025
Adjective
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However, the slow collision of Ray’s two worlds unfolds with the stern casualness of two business acquaintances meeting for dinner.—
Siddhant Adlakha,
Variety,
18 July 2025
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Bill Pogue’s family and friends knew him as a thoughtful, deeply sensitive man, despite his reputation as a gruff, stern, wildlife officer.—
Jim Zumbo,
Outdoor Life,
17 July 2025
Adjective
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If coffee is a sledgehammer blow to the brain — admittedly sometimes useful — yaupon was more like a gentle neural stroking.—
Gabriel Popkin,
Washington Post,
15 Aug. 2022
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And Sundwall said that, in retrospect, state health officials took a sledgehammer approach to mitigating the pandemic, such as school closings in 2020, when the state could have taken a more surgical tack.—
Bethany Rodgers,
The Salt Lake Tribune,
27 Sep. 2021
Adjective
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But going back to trying to be gentle in ungentle times.—
Stephanie Stradley,
Houston Chronicle,
25 Sep. 2020
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Notes From an Apocalypse is a gentle argument for coming to terms with the precarity of life, published in a moment where people are facing its fragility in an immediate and ungentle context.—
Kate Knibbs,
Wired,
16 Apr. 2020
Adjective
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Climate change is intensifying the global water cycle, leading to more frequent and severe flooding and drought.—
Claire Poole,
Forbes.com,
12 July 2025
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At least one worker was hospitalized with severe injuries.—
Martha McHardy,
MSNBC Newsweek,
12 July 2025
Adjective
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Robert Shapiro, the first member and initial chair of OJ Simpson's defense team, gave a grim prediction regarding Diddy's potential sentence.—
Lauryn Overhultz , Larry Fink,
FOXNews.com,
8 July 2025
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In 2024, that number hit a heartbreaking 105 — a grim record for child drownings in the state, according to the Florida Department of Children and Families (DCF).—
Karen Cohn,
The Orlando Sentinel,
7 July 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Ironfisted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ironfisted. Accessed 22 Jul. 2025.
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