ironfisted

adjective

Definition of ironfistednext
as in jackbooted

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Example 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
  • Karol let those lines here serve as her brief indictment of the present, jackbooted environment around immigration and repression in the United States.
    — Mikael Wood, Los Angeles Times, 13 Apr. 2026
  • 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
  • Resident's death under investigation The Middlesex County District Attorney's office, as well as the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, are examining whether the oppressive heat played any role in the resident's death.
    — Kristina Rex, CBS News, 12 Oct. 2026
  • The combination was as oppressive as the thermometer reading.
    — Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 4 Oct. 2026
Definition of oppressive
Adjective
  • The result is aromatic and flavorful without being heavy-handed.
    — Andy Baraghani, Bon Appetit Magazine, 9 Oct. 2026
  • The power Whitney expressed was more abstract than Beyoncé’s heavy-handed, and still astonishing, Super Bowl halftime performance in 2016, in which the artist stormed the field with a battalion of women dressed as Black Panthers.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of heavy-handed
Adjective
  • Below is Jordan — bearded, stern, and wearing a leather jacket — as Det.
    — James Hibberd, HollywoodReporter, 12 Oct. 2026
  • Preliminary information indicates that the explosion occurred near the vessel’s stern deck, resulting in limited damage, a police spokesperson said in a statement.
    — Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 7 Oct. 2026
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
  • 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
  • Trump's continuing criticism of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and praise of Putin only give Putin further confidence the United States is not serious about imposing more severe sanctions.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 17 Oct. 2026
  • That role demands reliable equipment capable of transmitting strategic instructions during severe national security crises.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of severe
Adjective
  • But if Earth did somehow get supremely unlucky, and we were directly hit by a jet even a few thousand light-years away, our situation would be grim.
    — Robin George Andrews, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026
  • The political environment appears increasingly favorable for Democrats and grim for Republicans, meaning districts once considered locks for the GOP are suddenly in play.
    — Jamie Ross, Washington Post, 19 Oct. 2026
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.

Browse Nearby Words

ironed out
ironfisted
ironhanded
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Cite this Entry

“Ironfisted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ironfisted. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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