besiege

1
as in to attack
to surround (as a fortified place) with armed forces for the purpose of capturing or preventing commerce and communication armies besieged the city for six months before it finally surrendered

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

2
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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of besiege The series, which also stars Kiowa Gordon, Jessica Matten and Deanna Allison, follows Lt. Joe Leaphorn (McClarnon), Jim Chee (Gordon) and Bernadette Manuelito (Matten) of the Navajo Tribal Police solving mysteries on their reservation as it is besieged by increasingly violent crimes in the 1970s. Peter White, Deadline, 24 Feb. 2025 So people are now facing the choice between staying in the camp to die from hunger, or risk their lives by moving through Darfur areas besieged by the RSF, Suliman said. Gabe Joselow, NBC News, 11 Feb. 2025 The two girls shared their perspectives on a recent national controversy that has besieged their community caused by a trans athlete competing on the girls' cross country team. Jackson Thompson, Fox News, 31 Jan. 2025 The big picture: Hegseth has been besieged with scandals since his nomination was announced, though Republicans have largely rallied around him in recent weeks. Axios, 20 Jan. 2025 See All Example Sentences for besiege
Recent Examples of Synonyms for besiege
Verb
  • When Jensen then decides to go long, Collins and Pinnock move towards the near post and Wissa adjusts his position to be able to attack the second ball.
    Mark Carey, The Athletic, 13 Mar. 2025
  • There’s good reason why security experts, and analysts such as myself, recommend using a password manager as hackers continue to attack the integrity of your login credentials across accounts.
    Davey Winder, Forbes, 12 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • McCaffery has a contract through the 2028 season, but with his program plagued by stagnant on-court performance and collapsing ticket sales, athletic director Beth Goetz could make a change.
    Scott Dochterman, The Athletic, 14 Mar. 2025
  • Brad Schimel is the law and order candidate backed by Wisconsin's law enforcement, while Susan Crawford is funded by George Soros and plagued by her soft-on-crime past.
    Raja Krishnamoorthi, Newsweek, 13 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • The caller also begs the grandparent not to tell mom and dad.
    Steve Weisman, Forbes, 14 Mar. 2025
  • But The Electric State begs for playfulness, dynamism, some sense of dash and charm.
    Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 14 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • If China blockades or invades Taiwan, the short-term economic disruptions to the United States and its allies would be large enough to rival the losses caused by a broad decoupling.
    Stephen G. Brooks, Foreign Affairs, 20 Feb. 2025
  • Some protesters have been blockading key roads in major cities, as well as occupying dozens of university facilities.
    ByNenad Jarić Daunhauer, science.org, 12 Feb. 2025
Verb
  • His psychological symptoms—memory loss, disorientation, auditory hallucinations—mirror the real-world phenomenon of Havana Syndrome, which has afflicted U.S. diplomats and intelligence officers with unexplained neurological issues.
    Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 4 Mar. 2025
  • For several reasons, women tend to be most afflicted.
    Stacey Colino, TIME, 4 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • Paul McCartney is petitioning for late English blues-rock singer Joe Cocker to be inducted into the Rock Hall of Fame this year.
    Thania Garcia, Variety, 3 Mar. 2025
  • Often, another person must file an immigrant petition for an applicant − often referred to as sponsoring or petitioning for the individual.
    Natalie Neysa Alund, USA TODAY, 26 Feb. 2025
Verb
  • The move raises the prospect of Russian forces cutting Ukrainian supply lines and encircling Kyiv's troops.
    William Lambers, Newsweek, 8 Mar. 2025
  • Wolves track, pursue and encircle prey using only positional awareness of their packmates, proving that teamwork can arise naturally—without a leader.
    Scott Travers, Forbes, 8 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • At least two of them fled Venezuela in part because Tren de Aragua was persecuting them, according to the lawsuit.
    Syra Ortiz Blanes, Miami Herald, 18 Mar. 2025
  • Yoon’s conservative supporters have latched on to his arguments as well as his unsubstantiated claims of election fraud, strongly echoing the dynamic between President Donald Trump and supporters who say he has been wrongly persecuted by a corrupt judicial system.
    Beomsu Jo, NBC News, 8 Mar. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Besiege.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/besiege. Accessed 24 Mar. 2025.

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