as in categorized
disapproving
to unfairly think of or describe (someone or something) as belonging to only a certain category
She likes to perform different types of music because she doesn't want to be pigeonholed.
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Recent Examples of pigeonholed
That’s hardly the only time Davis has been pigeonholed in her career.
—
Galina Espinoza, Flow Space, 10 Sep. 2025
After making Dances With Wolves, Greene told his agents to pursue other types of projects to ensure he wasn’t pigeonholed as a performer.
—Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 3 Sep. 2025
But Gaga has also been savvy enough not to be pigeonholed as just the avant-garde lady, though, opting for high elegance depending on the event.
—EW.com, 31 Aug. 2025
While men athletes often get pigeonholed into specific marketing lanes, women athletes naturally cross boundaries.
—Lindsey Darvin, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2025
We were really set on wanting this movie to have a certain amount of comedy timelessness, and so not getting pigeonholed in any one specific was really important for us.
—Ryan Gajewski, HollywoodReporter, 5 Aug. 2025
What sets Gupta apart is his refusal to be pigeonholed.
—Ritu Upadhyay, Footwear News, 3 Sep. 2019
Galina Espinoza, Flow Space, 10 Sep. 2025
After making Dances With Wolves, Greene told his agents to pursue other types of projects to ensure he wasn’t pigeonholed as a performer.
—Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 3 Sep. 2025
But Gaga has also been savvy enough not to be pigeonholed as just the avant-garde lady, though, opting for high elegance depending on the event.
—EW.com, 31 Aug. 2025
While men athletes often get pigeonholed into specific marketing lanes, women athletes naturally cross boundaries.
—Lindsey Darvin, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2025
We were really set on wanting this movie to have a certain amount of comedy timelessness, and so not getting pigeonholed in any one specific was really important for us.
—Ryan Gajewski, HollywoodReporter, 5 Aug. 2025
What sets Gupta apart is his refusal to be pigeonholed.
—Ritu Upadhyay, Footwear News, 3 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pigeonholed
Verb
-
Back at SubTropolis, the Chiefs’ history is filed away and categorized.—
Blair Kerkhoff,
Kansas City Star,
24 Oct. 2025
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Artworks, curated from the foundation’s existing collection, are categorized under four broad themes that explore architecture, the living world, techniques and materials, and the relationship between science and artistic creation.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
23 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Forecasters had also considered Sherrill the front-runner—Cook Political Report and Sabato’s Crystal Ball classified the race as Leans Democratic.—
Andrew Stanton,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 Nov. 2025
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Composed of elements like proteins, fatty lipids, and sugars, the yeast biomass remaining after alcohol and drug production is typically classified as a byproduct or waste.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
4 Nov. 2025
Verb
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He was relegated to spectator for almost the entire Blue Jays postseason push, as his teammates authored October moments.—
Fabian Ardaya,
New York Times,
2 Nov. 2025
-
In May 2024, SANIL announced a corporate restructuring that elevated Brown to CEO and relegated Belzer to a largely ceremonial role as co-chairman.—
Daniel Libit,
Sportico.com,
30 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Teller took to heart the classic Greek playwright Aristophanes’ myth of love — that humans were born as a fusion of two bodies and later separated as punishment from the gods, only to spend their lives looking — and longing — for their other half.—
Samantha Conti,
Footwear News,
31 Oct. 2025
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Andrew and Fergie married in 1986, separated in 1992, and divorced in 1996, but the two have remained close.—
Lizzie Lanuza,
StyleCaster,
31 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The researchers identified nine confounding factors in the study, like parental demographics, socioeconomic status, cognitive development and peer influence.—
Greta Cross,
USA Today,
31 Oct. 2025
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And some risk factors for obesity aren’t modifiable, for example genetics; researchers have identified at least 15 different genes that influence obesity.—
Helen Carefoot,
Flow Space,
31 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pigeonholed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pigeonholed. Accessed 6 Nov. 2025.
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