as in scolds
to criticize (someone) severely or angrily especially for personal failings
there's no need to keelhaul him—it was an honest mistake, and a small one at that
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for keelhauls
Verb
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Someone else scolds the offender.
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Inspired by This Is Spinal Tap, Cundieff makes quick work of lambasting the casual misogyny and homophobia ingrained in hardcore rap, but also of the media scolds unable to parse the message of the music.
Verb
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Today’s successful downtowns rely on a mix of ingredients, said Steven Falk, the former city manager of Lafayette, who’s served as an interim city executive in Oakland and Richmond and who lectures at UC Berkeley’s Goldman School of Public Policy.
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Bad teams are given mechanisms to recover, not lectures about bootstraps.
Verb
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The emperor reprimands her for being late for the rainmaking ritual.
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His supervisor appears as a ticket conductor and reprimands him for doing nothing.
Verb
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The couple has been targeted by a group called Boycott Divest Zabludowicz, which criticizes them for supporting a pro-Israel lobby.
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That letter, referenced in the Brandeis Center complaint, criticizes the APA for failing to discipline a former division president, Lara Sheehi, for various incendiary comments about Zionism.
Verb
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The nonprofit blames the lack of progress on government red tape and diminishing federal funding to provide subsidies and incentives.
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Industry, like tobacco companies, turns a blind eye to the problem, continues its mass production to achieve maximum profit and blames the consumer for bad choices.
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Cite this Entry
“Keelhauls.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/keelhauls. Accessed 2 Jul. 2026.
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