as in great
of the very best kind
that's a bully idea for reviving the town's retail center
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in intimidator
a person who teases, threatens, or hurts smaller, weaker, or more vulnerable persons
the school has a procedure for students who want to report problems with bullies
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in thug
a violent, brutal person who is often a member of an organized gang
the local loan shark and his bullies have ways of making people pay up
Synonyms & Similar Words
1
as in to abuse
to inflict physical or emotional harm upon
the kindergarten teacher explained why it was wrong to bully classmates
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to intimidate
to make timid or fearful by or as if by threats
the manager was fired for bullying employees
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 bully
Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 24 Mar. 2025
His targets can push back or give in, but capitulation to a bully only brings more bullying.
—New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 24 Mar. 2025
Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 31 Mar. 2025
Broadway and film producer Scott Rudin, whose aggressive and bullying behavior to some of his staff led to public condemnation and his withdrawal from producing four years ago, is making a comeback, which Rudin announces today in an interview with The New York Times.
—Greg Evans, Deadline, 28 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bully
Noun
The series follows Alan and his classmates who face off against bullies and villains, emerging victorious through the power of love.
—Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 24 Mar. 2025
His targets can push back or give in, but capitulation to a bully only brings more bullying.
—New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 24 Mar. 2025
Verb
In Johnson’s staging, Austin is fragile and visibly intimidated by the hulking, bullying presence of Lee, who implies cruelly and wordlessly that Austin could be a closeted gay man.
—Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 31 Mar. 2025
Broadway and film producer Scott Rudin, whose aggressive and bullying behavior to some of his staff led to public condemnation and his withdrawal from producing four years ago, is making a comeback, which Rudin announces today in an interview with The New York Times.
—Greg Evans, Deadline, 28 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for bully
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bully
Adjective
-
Temu and Shein have taken steps to grow their operations in the U.S. as the de minimis loophole has come under greater scrutiny.—
Annie Palmer,
CNBC,
3 Apr. 2025
-
This assignment begins with secondary and higher educational institutions taking greater strides to enrich offerings civics instruction.—
Blake D. Morant,
Forbes.com,
3 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
The British consul wants to smuggle the seal out of China, with the help of a group of local thugs.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
7 Apr. 2025
-
As the machine gun thug tries to seal that deal for Whitman, Cara attempts to get him in her rifle's sights.—
Matt Cabral,
EW.com,
6 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
Authorities subsequently found that the boy and Ruby's 10-year-old daughter had been seriously abused.—
Liam Quinn,
People.com,
28 Mar. 2025
-
In May 2023, Attorney General Kwame Raoul published a 696-page report, which found that over about seven decades, at least 1,997 children have been abused by 451 Catholic clerics and religious brothers across the state’s dioceses.—
Natalie Demaree,
Miami Herald,
27 Mar. 2025
Verb
-
And, Wright says, human therapists should not be intimidated by their AI counterparts.—
Katia Riddle,
NPR,
7 Apr. 2025
-
For the past year and a half, our Arab, Palestinian, and Muslim community at Microsoft has been silenced, intimidated, harassed, and doxxed, with impunity from Microsoft.—
Jordan Novet,Hayden Field,
CNBC,
4 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Ovechkin is easy to like, though, by all accounts a terrific teammate.—
Greg Cote,
Miami Herald,
7 Apr. 2025
-
Just when Kenin looked set to push the contest into a decider, Pegula saved three set points and won six consecutive games to mount a terrific fightback and clinch victory.—
Manasi Pathak,
Forbes.com,
7 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Over the past few weeks, President Trump has used executive orders to wage war on law firms, specifically targeting those whose lawyers have investigated or sued him, or represented his enemies in court.—
Michael Barbaro,
New York Times,
7 Apr. 2025
-
After an all-out war between Jacob and his enemies, scores of lifeless bodies are left on the platform in a win for the current and future Duttons, including that of Banner Creighton (Jerome Flynn).—
Jackie Strause,
HollywoodReporter,
6 Apr. 2025
Noun
-
Whereas Serena could easily have emerged as a one-note villain, from the beginning of her tenure on the series, Strahovski has imbued Serena with a soulfulness that often puts the audience uncomfortably on her side, despite her reprehensible actions.—
Scarlett Harris,
IndieWire,
7 Apr. 2025
-
Even when a big threat does arrive on the scene, the heroes aren't there right away, so plenty of innocent people get hurt before a villain gets brought to justice.—
John W. Dean,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
But Lively did believe she had been harassed and mistreated on set, the filing claims, making the defamation accusation false.—
Anna Kaufman,
USA TODAY,
20 Mar. 2025
-
In a series of posts on X Monday (March 17), the star clapped back at critics of her new music before calling out the way Black women have historically been mistreated.—
Hannah Dailey,
Billboard,
18 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Bully.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bully. Accessed 15 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share