1
as in fairy
an imaginary being usually having a small human form and magical powers
in Shakespeare's Midsummer Night's Dream, Puck is a hobgoblin who plays pranks such as spoiling milk and tripping old ladies
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2
as in dread
something or someone that causes fear or dread especially without reason
the fear of success and the pressures that come with it can be more of a hobgoblin than the possibility of failure
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Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of hobgoblin
Consistency is the hobgoblin of large language models.
—
Brianne Kane, Scientific American, 29 Sep. 2023
While the community might celebrate the hobgoblin’s induction into Detroit culture, Detroiters must always keep watch for when the Nain Rouge returns and provokes disaster.
—Kylie Martin, Detroit Free Press, 8 Aug. 2023
The narrative unfolds communally around a table, with plenty of backtracking, retconning, and joking—and avoiding the small-minded hobgoblins of consistency and rules-lawyering.
—Ethan Gilsdorf, WIRED, 27 June 2023
Consistency is the hobgoblin of small minds.
—John Pearley Huffman, Car and Driver, 4 Feb. 2022
See all Example Sentences for hobgoblin 
Brianne Kane, Scientific American, 29 Sep. 2023
While the community might celebrate the hobgoblin’s induction into Detroit culture, Detroiters must always keep watch for when the Nain Rouge returns and provokes disaster.
—Kylie Martin, Detroit Free Press, 8 Aug. 2023
The narrative unfolds communally around a table, with plenty of backtracking, retconning, and joking—and avoiding the small-minded hobgoblins of consistency and rules-lawyering.
—Ethan Gilsdorf, WIRED, 27 June 2023
Consistency is the hobgoblin of small minds.
—John Pearley Huffman, Car and Driver, 4 Feb. 2022
See all Example Sentences for hobgoblin
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hobgoblin
Noun
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The image of crew member Frank Silva, spontaneously recruited to play the murderous demon Bob, at the foot of Laura’s bed instills an overwhelming sense of dread, even as a static screenshot.—
Alison Herman,
Variety,
16 Jan. 2025
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The thought of returning to the beach filled her with dread.—
Lila Shapiro,
Vulture,
13 Jan. 2025
Noun
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Arrietty Next in is Arrietty, who does elf drag by whitening the triangle between her eyebrows to the extreme.—
Jason P. Frank,
Vulture,
3 Jan. 2025
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Techno music blasted as the singer showed off the elf's DJ booth from all angles.—
Zoey Lyttle,
People.com,
25 Dec. 2024
Noun
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So as ghosts and goblins roam the streets this Halloween season, remember that market fears, like shadows in the night, are often more frightening in our imagination than in reality.—
Robert Daugherty,
Forbes,
29 Oct. 2024
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The event, at the Denver Savoy, will also feature a custom mini-labyrinth and a goblin band in addition to The Whimsy of Things.—
John Wenzel,
The Denver Post,
24 Oct. 2024
Noun
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The following scenes are set in that show and tell the ogre's story through life-size wooden puppets complete with mock strings attached to their arms.—
Caroline Reid,
Forbes,
18 Jan. 2025
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And the other thing is ogres have tempers, and so do Scottish people.—
Jesse David Fox,
Vulture,
4 Dec. 2024
Noun
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Emperor tamarins are dwarf monkeys with whiskers that resemble a white moustache.—
Robert Higgs,
cleveland,
1 Feb. 2023
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The dwarf variety grows to be about 5 to 7 feet, ideal for a small garden or accent in a room with limited space.—
Bryce Jones,
Better Homes & Gardens,
24 Jan. 2023
Noun
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The new Conservative government, intent on reducing the deficit, cut deep and broad, slashing spending not just on party bugbears like welfare but also on public budgets for investment.—
Josh Holder,
New York Times,
3 July 2024
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Another bugbear on Teams can come if you’ve been invited to a pre-arranged meeting, or left a meeting partway through, but still receive notifications every time a message is typed into the chat box of the ongoing meeting.—
Chris Stokel-Walker,
WIRED,
6 Dec. 2020
Noun
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Since the Hamas terror attacks of October 7, Canadian cities have been disgraced by anti-Semitic incidents of accelerating violence.—
David Frum,
The Atlantic,
15 Jan. 2025
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Fighting began in Gaza began on Oct. 7, 2023, when the Palestinian militant group Hamas carried out a terror attack on Israel in which 1,200 people were killed.—
Alexander Smith,
NBC News,
15 Jan. 2025
Noun
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The Unseelie Court is the bastion of malevolent faeries who harm humans for their amusement or to exact revenge.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes,
27 Nov. 2024
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That’s in addition to the strange creatures that roam the countryside such as faeries and dragon.—
Rob Wieland,
Forbes,
6 Nov. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Hobgoblin.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hobgoblin. Accessed 27 Jan. 2025.
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