1
as in clumsiness
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2
as in oppressiveness
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of heavy-handedness
Ziegler’s humor and sympathy for her characters—including Creon, who desperately wants to do right by everyone—saves the conflict between individual and state from heavy-handedness.
—
Dan Stahl, New Yorker, 13 Mar. 2026
The Hims & Hers ad is shrewd in its heavy-handedness.
—Yasmin Tayag, The Atlantic, 8 Feb. 2026
Beijing was selected over Almaty, Kazakhstan, as the 2022 host city after four other candidates, including Oslo and Stockholm, withdrew citing costs, high public opposition and IOC heavy-handedness.
—Scott M. Reid, Oc Register, 30 Jan. 2026
Dan Stahl, New Yorker, 13 Mar. 2026
The Hims & Hers ad is shrewd in its heavy-handedness.
—Yasmin Tayag, The Atlantic, 8 Feb. 2026
Beijing was selected over Almaty, Kazakhstan, as the 2022 host city after four other candidates, including Oslo and Stockholm, withdrew citing costs, high public opposition and IOC heavy-handedness.
—Scott M. Reid, Oc Register, 30 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for heavy-handedness
Noun
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For Perssonatti, the disease is more about fatigue, brain fog, word salad, and clumsiness.—
Pamela McLoughlin,
Hartford Courant,
10 Mar. 2026
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The desire for more speed also demonstrated some of the internal clumsiness Weiss and her close inner circle have lamented on the technical side.—
Max Tani,
semafor.com,
2 Mar. 2026
Noun
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This journalistic cynicism amid government ham-handedness shattered something precious too.—
Gil Troy,
New York Daily News,
29 Mar. 2026
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Only when Bouzid deals with the repercussions of homophobic Tunisian laws does the melodrama tip into ham-handedness.—
Murtada Elfadl,
Variety,
13 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Sunlight naturally sanitizes, and air drying prevents the harshness of high heat.—
Ashlyn Needham,
Southern Living,
14 Feb. 2026
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The tinted visor that Morgan Geekie wore for two games against the Chicago Blackhawks and Dallas Stars in January could help mute the lights’ harshness.—
Fluto Shinzawa,
New York Times,
1 Feb. 2026
Noun
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There is the silence of caution, uncertainty and doubt, of refusal and denial — or the silence of inexperience, ignorance or innocence.—
Cyraina Johnson-Roullier,
Chicago Tribune,
1 Apr. 2026
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However, there’s a vocal cohort of leaders who won’t leave Gen Z out in the cold—and in fact, their inexperience is sometimes seen as an asset.—
Emma Burleigh,
Fortune,
23 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Mikey Madison does a stellar job of switching back and forth between homicidal malevolence and victimhood, going straight for pity whenever Amber is cornered.—
Louis Peitzman,
Vulture,
27 Feb. 2026
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Almost: Childhood is both bliss and terror, and the Richard D. James Album takes care to wrap malevolence and innocence tightly into the same steel coil.—
Sasha Geffen,
Pitchfork,
21 Jan. 2026
Noun
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There’s some rudeness, aggressive conversations, and crudeness, but nothing too over the top.—
Lynnette Nicholas,
Parents,
4 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Would there be perpetual meanness and the absence of kindness toward each other as human beings?—
Kevin Powell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Mar. 2026
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The result is a movie where the jokes are just mean, and the meanness isn’t funny, leading to a cynical denouement that’s been done many times before.—
Katie Rife,
IndieWire,
16 Mar. 2026
Noun
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These surrenders might occur because of unpreparedness or life changes.—
Liz O'Connell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Heavy-handedness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/heavy-handedness. Accessed 8 Apr. 2026.
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