as in threatens
to use blackmail against (someone)
The old man was being blackmailed by his nephew.
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Recent Examples of blackmails
Eager to have his cake and eat it too, Benedict blackmails Sophie into taking a job with his mother.
—
Savannah Walsh, Vanity Fair, 30 Jan. 2026
Donald wins the governor’s race, but Lee blackmails him into signing over his family’s land to the Osage Nation in memory of his late brother.
—Kathryn Vanarendonk, Vulture, 10 Nov. 2025
Shay blackmails him, triggering a father-son feud.
—Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 8 Oct. 2025
Savannah Walsh, Vanity Fair, 30 Jan. 2026
Donald wins the governor’s race, but Lee blackmails him into signing over his family’s land to the Osage Nation in memory of his late brother.
—Kathryn Vanarendonk, Vulture, 10 Nov. 2025
Shay blackmails him, triggering a father-son feud.
—Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 8 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for blackmails
Verb
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Some schools in Minnesota have already announced closings or shifts to virtual learning on Thursday as another round of winter weather threatens parts of the state.—
Eric Henderson,
CBS News,
2 Apr. 2026
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This law, presented in the name of anti-discrimination, threatens to do exactly that against private religious institutions that do not comply with state mandates or rules that would conflict with a private religious institution’s beliefs and views.—
Stephen Mitchell,
Baltimore Sun,
2 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The pencil-thin DQ Tower squeezes a full home into a very slender footprint, while the EONE XL takes a wider prefab approach to the same basic challenge.—
Stefan Ionescu
March 30,
New Atlas,
30 Mar. 2026
-
There’s no end to the war in sight after one month as Iran squeezes the global economy.—
Kayla Hayempour,
NBC news,
29 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
For Robert Flamerich, who drives from Miami Beach to Doral daily, conserving gas means sacrificing comfort.—
Austin Carter,
CBS News,
3 Apr. 2026
-
The heat causes the second liquid to turn to steam, and the steam drives a generator turbine, producing electricity.—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
2 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The streak certainly impresses goaltender Scott Wedgewood.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
3 Apr. 2026
-
Offensive line impresses Despite starting tackle Ryan Hughes and left guard Cade Bennett being held out of practice, TCU’s offensive line had a strong opening day of camp.—
Steven Johnson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
24 Mar. 2026
Verb
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However, the rotation of this filament clearly dominates how the galaxies within it spin, perhaps by funneling hydrogen gas along the dark-matter filament and onto the galaxies in a way that coerces their spin while providing further fuel for star formation.—
Keith Cooper,
Space.com,
4 Dec. 2025
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Haunted by the suspicious death of his ailing mother, Ali, a university professor, coerces his enigmatic gardener to execute a cold-blooded act of vengeance.—
Jill Goldsmith,
Deadline,
14 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Benedict and Sophie meet again in the countryside when Sophie protects a fellow maid after a group of Benedict’s acquaintances harasses her.—
Monica Mercuri,
Forbes.com,
29 Jan. 2026
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The report includes a screenshot that appears to show Accurso engaging with a comment from an Instagram account that frequently praises Hamas and harasses Jews.—
Ethan Shanfeld,
Variety,
22 Jan. 2026
Verb
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As the war drags on, Americans are growing pessimistic about the economy, according to some surveys and polls.—
Bryan Mena,
CNN Money,
1 Apr. 2026
-
And in late February, just as attention began to shift away from Gaza, Israel and the United States launched a joint attack on Iran—a potentially epochal war that may end up dividing Jewish Americans no less than the Gaza war did, particularly if the conflict drags on and casualties mount.—
Eyal Press,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Blackmails.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/blackmails. Accessed 5 Apr. 2026.
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