ironfisted

adjective

Definition of ironfistednext
as in jackbooted

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Examples Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for ironfisted
  1. jackbooted
  2. oppressive
  3. heavy-handed
  4. stern
  5. sledgehammer
  6. ungentle
  7. severe
  8. grim
Adjective
  • Cooper was obsessed with the New World Order and the actions of jackbooted government enforcers against the Branch Davidians in Waco, Texas, and white separatist Randy Weaver at Ruby Ridge, Idaho.
    Andrew Stuttaford, WSJ, 19 Sep. 2018
  • Hungary under his rule is far from a jackbooted dictatorship, but its democracy is diverging markedly from that of many of its partners in the European Union.
    Ishaan Tharoor, Washington Post, 6 Apr. 2018
Definition of jackbooted
Adjective
  • By that logic, the Union is the oppressive force, and her movement is the real resistance.
    Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 11 Oct. 2024
  • Debuting in 2014, Watch Dogs is an action-adventure game immersing players in the world of skilled hackers who use technology to combat oppressive forces controlling major cities across the world.
    Matt Grobar, Deadline, 13 Sep. 2024
Definition of oppressive
Adjective
  • Briskly paced, de Jonge’s movie covers a lot of ground both tonal and geographic without ever seeming hurried, conspicuously touristic or heavy-handed in its mix of humor and pathos.
    Dennis Harvey, Variety, 27 Nov. 2024
  • Republicans in general—especially President-elect Donald Trump—tend to be much less heavy-handed than Democrats, so the Biden administration is quickly moving several of its Big Tech consumer watchdog and antitrust investigations forward.
    Megan Poinski, Forbes, 25 Nov. 2024
Definition of heavy-handed
Adjective
  • Unable to find the individual, Bryan delivered a stern warning instead.
    Angel Saunders, People.com, 26 Nov. 2024
  • Montgomery based the story of Anne in part on her own upbringing, after her mother died and her father left her with her stern grandparents in Cavendish on the north shore of the island.
    Melanie Stetson Freeman, The Christian Science Monitor, 26 Nov. 2024
Definition of stern
Adjective
  • If coffee is a sledgehammer blow to the brain — admittedly sometimes useful — yaupon was more like a gentle neural stroking.
    Gabriel Popkin, Washington Post, 15 Aug. 2022
  • And Sundwall said that, in retrospect, state health officials took a sledgehammer approach to mitigating the pandemic, such as school closings in 2020, when the state could have taken a more surgical tack.
    Bethany Rodgers, The Salt Lake Tribune, 27 Sep. 2021
Definition of sledgehammer
Adjective
  • But going back to trying to be gentle in ungentle times.
    Stephanie Stradley, Houston Chronicle, 25 Sep. 2020
  • Notes From an Apocalypse is a gentle argument for coming to terms with the precarity of life, published in a moment where people are facing its fragility in an immediate and ungentle context.
    Kate Knibbs, Wired, 16 Apr. 2020
Definition of ungentle
Adjective
  • This sci-fi thriller kicks off after an unusual solar flare causes severe memory loss on a global scale.
    Jamie Lang, Variety, 19 Nov. 2024
  • The interference is also less severe since the radio telescope is pointing to the sky, away from wireless signals near the ground.
    Michael Kan, PCMAG, 12 Nov. 2024
Definition of severe
Adjective
  • That knowledge adds additional layers of defiance and bravery to this grim tale, which incorporates actual protest footage and video of police brutality to amplify the narrative’s verisimilitude.
    Tim Grierson, Los Angeles Times, 28 Nov. 2024
  • Commentators speculated that numerous suppliers in the car industry would inevitably have to slash salaries in an already grim job market in the new year.
    Juliana Liu, CNN, 28 Nov. 2024
Definition of grim
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.

Thesaurus Entries Near ironfisted

ironed out

ironfisted

ironhanded

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Ironfisted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ironfisted. Accessed 3 Dec. 2024.

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