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
  • Among those waiting to meet the president was Leon Czolgosz, a 28-year-old anarchist who considered the government oppressive.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 28 Aug. 2026
  • People seem to be craving the scent of something cooling and quenching, an olfactive promise that less oppressive weather lies ahead.
    — April Long, Allure, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of oppressive
Adjective
  • And the Peaches and Pea, a drink that teeters on the edge of cloying, heavy-handed with peach oleo-saccharum.
    — Jenn Harris, Los Angeles Times, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Insurgent violence escalated sharply in 2004 and was met with heavy-handed crackdowns, further fueling discontent.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 23 Aug. 2026
Definition of heavy-handed
Adjective
  • Irving was born in New York City on April 3, 1783, the son of a stern Scottish immigrant who ran a tidy import business selling wine, sugar, and hardware.
    — Eric Lach, New Yorker, 26 Aug. 2026
  • Former President Joe Biden turned to then-CIA Director William Burns to relay stern warnings to Russia before and after President Vladimir Putin launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
    — Matthew Mulligan, NBC news, 25 Aug. 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
  • The original house sustained severe damage, DFR said, and the cause of the fire is under investigation.
    — S.E. Jenkins, CBS News, 24 Aug. 2026
  • Wage growth hasn’t kept pace with inflation and the city faces its most severe housing shortage in a generation.
    — Samantha Delouya, CNN Money, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of severe
Adjective
  • Crossing $40 trillion in debt should mark more than another grim headline.
    — Carolyn Bourdeaux, Chicago Tribune, 23 Aug. 2026
  • Others remained in the courtroom to face the grim facts of what happened to his body.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 21 Aug. 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 30 Aug. 2026.

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