as in categorizing
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 pigeonholing
The researchers, led by Arne Güllich of RPTU Kaiserlautern-Landau in Germany, noted that prodigies often specialized in a single discipline, pigeonholing themselves in a particular field early in life.
—
Jake Angelo, Fortune, 9 Jan. 2026
The broader appeal and usefulness of the Dashaway eCT are just too dramatic to dedicate more time pigeonholing himself into a restrictive niche.
—New Atlas, 28 Oct. 2025
Leibovitz has always resisted pigeonholing.
—Y-Jean Mun-Delsalle, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2025
Jake Angelo, Fortune, 9 Jan. 2026
The broader appeal and usefulness of the Dashaway eCT are just too dramatic to dedicate more time pigeonholing himself into a restrictive niche.
—New Atlas, 28 Oct. 2025
Leibovitz has always resisted pigeonholing.
—Y-Jean Mun-Delsalle, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pigeonholing
Verb
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Investigators are also not categorizing the case as any particular type of crime at this stage, according to a federal law enforcement source with knowledge of the investigation.—
Liz Kreutz,
NBC news,
16 Feb. 2026
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Budgeting apps like Empower and Monarch connect to your bank account and credit cards, automatically tracking and categorizing your transactions.—
Jasmin Suknanan,
CNBC,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
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This means OpenAI is essentially classifying the model as capable enough at coding to potentially facilitate significant cyber harm, especially if automated or used at scale.—
Beatrice Nolan,
Fortune,
10 Feb. 2026
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Young Women’s Leadership Academy has students in grades 6-12 and has an 85% minority population, with 65% of total students classifying as Hispanic and 20% as African-American.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
30 Jan. 2026
Verb
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James Borrego had been utilizing a big lineup, relegating Jeremiah Fears to a reserve role, but Fears played 30 minutes in each of the past two contests.—
Stan Son,
New York Times,
19 Feb. 2026
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Embracing those expectations rather than fighting them, Kok extended her two-year-plus unbeaten streak at her sport’s shortest distance Sunday, adding a gold medal and the Olympic record to her world mark, beating Jackson head-to-head in the final heat and relegating Leerdam to the silver.—
Howard Fendrich,
Chicago Tribune,
15 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The palace has sought to draw a bold line separating the former prince and the rest of the monarchy by stripping him of his titles, including the right to be called a prince.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
21 Feb. 2026
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As with any biological evidence, there can be challenges in separating DNA, etc.—
Stephanie Murray,
AZCentral.com,
21 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The sheriff told the outlet investigators are getting closer to identifying some of the clothing worn by the suspect captured on Guthrie's doorbell camera and are awaiting more DNA analysis.—
Jeanine Santucci,
USA Today,
22 Feb. 2026
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The mayor advanced his efforts to ease these financial burdens by announcing that every city agency would be required to appoint a chief savings officer tasked with identifying savings within a 45-day window.—
Julie Samuels,
New York Daily News,
22 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Pigeonholing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pigeonholing. Accessed 1 Mar. 2026.
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