as in advantage
the more favorable condition or position in a competition
unquestionably the company has the whip hand in negotiations with the labor union
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Recent Examples of whip hand
The understandable view is that, with the NATO alliance facing its biggest crisis in decades and transatlantic unity potentially splintering, support in the West for Ukraine’s war effort is sure to falter, handing Moscow an even stronger whip hand on the battlefield.
—
Matthew Chance, CNN Money, 20 Jan. 2026
Microsoft’s whip hand, more than anything, else, comes down to cold hard cash.
—Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 19 Nov. 2023
The failure of the ‘red wave’ to materialize means that an old-fashioned socialist will have the whip hand over health care for the next two years.
—Joel Zinberg, National Review, 30 Nov. 2022
Amazon has been using the cameras to monitor social distancing between workers during the pandemic — just one of the ways in which computers hold the whip hand in this workplace.
—Sarah O'Connor, Ars Technica, 19 Mar. 2022
The president will be held responsible for whatever happens, so House Democrats have the whip hand in any negotiation.
—Ryan Cooper, TheWeek, 17 Mar. 2020
Matthew Chance, CNN Money, 20 Jan. 2026
Microsoft’s whip hand, more than anything, else, comes down to cold hard cash.
—Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 19 Nov. 2023
The failure of the ‘red wave’ to materialize means that an old-fashioned socialist will have the whip hand over health care for the next two years.
—Joel Zinberg, National Review, 30 Nov. 2022
Amazon has been using the cameras to monitor social distancing between workers during the pandemic — just one of the ways in which computers hold the whip hand in this workplace.
—Sarah O'Connor, Ars Technica, 19 Mar. 2022
The president will be held responsible for whatever happens, so House Democrats have the whip hand in any negotiation.
—Ryan Cooper, TheWeek, 17 Mar. 2020
Recent Examples of Synonyms for whip hand
Noun
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And the country’s colossal pharma production industry is gearing up to take advantage by selling generic versions.—
Ayushi Shah,
CNN Money,
8 Feb. 2026
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But turning this moment into lasting advantage will require careful planning, not just short-term opportunism.—
Yinka Adegoke,
semafor.com,
7 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Arm's chip designs power most of the world's smartphones and are increasingly used in AI data centers and edge computing devices.—
Dylan Butts,
CNBC,
5 Feb. 2026
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On Thursday afternoon, OpenAI released a new cutting-edge coding model that the company said assisted in its own creation.—
Jared Perlo,
NBC news,
5 Feb. 2026
Noun
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This approach could transform potential adversaries into advocates, giving leadership an upper hand when activist pressure mounts.—
Sam Wolf,
Fortune,
5 Feb. 2026
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Because with Ben at the Helm(rath), there’s a significant upper hand.—
Keith Stewart,
New York Times,
2 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Whip hand.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/whip%20hand. Accessed 12 Feb. 2026.
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