as in hobby
an activity outside of one's regular occupation that is engaged in primarily for pleasure
oil painting became the hobbyhorse of her long years of retirement
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Recent Examples of hobbyhorse
The notion that Winston Churchill, not the German Führer, was the villain in World War II — another of Buchanan’s hobbyhorses — is again gaining ground on the right.
—
Bret Stephens, Mercury News, 14 Nov. 2025
There must have been hundreds of them made, a stable of hobbyhorses, and one had ended up in the basement of our house in Massachusetts.
—Cynthia Zarin, Harpers Magazine, 19 Sep. 2025
Old-fashioned hobbyhorses entice shoppers to imagine riding on them.
—Melanie Stetson Freeman, Christian Science Monitor, 31 July 2025
It is also blighted by Tanenhaus’s hobbyhorses, which are especially evident in his caviling when promoting his book.
—The Editors, National Review, 2 June 2025
Both parties instead must make the case that federal funding for research is not a partisan hobbyhorse but a source of long-term economic and political strength.
—David G. Victor, Foreign Affairs, 28 May 2025
The treatment of white farmers in South Africa has been a hobbyhorse of South African X owner Elon Musk for quite a while.
—ArsTechnica, 14 May 2025
In 2017, the National Institutes of Health asked Hotez to meet with Kennedy to move him off the hobbyhorse of a vaccine-autism link.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 22 Apr. 2025
Mergers and acquisitions of media companies is an area squarely in the FCC’s purview, which cannot be said of Section 230 and more tech-adjacent regulation that have also been Carr hobbyhorses.
—Steven Zeitchik, HollywoodReporter, 3 Apr. 2025
Bret Stephens, Mercury News, 14 Nov. 2025
There must have been hundreds of them made, a stable of hobbyhorses, and one had ended up in the basement of our house in Massachusetts.
—Cynthia Zarin, Harpers Magazine, 19 Sep. 2025
Old-fashioned hobbyhorses entice shoppers to imagine riding on them.
—Melanie Stetson Freeman, Christian Science Monitor, 31 July 2025
It is also blighted by Tanenhaus’s hobbyhorses, which are especially evident in his caviling when promoting his book.
—The Editors, National Review, 2 June 2025
Both parties instead must make the case that federal funding for research is not a partisan hobbyhorse but a source of long-term economic and political strength.
—David G. Victor, Foreign Affairs, 28 May 2025
The treatment of white farmers in South Africa has been a hobbyhorse of South African X owner Elon Musk for quite a while.
—ArsTechnica, 14 May 2025
In 2017, the National Institutes of Health asked Hotez to meet with Kennedy to move him off the hobbyhorse of a vaccine-autism link.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 22 Apr. 2025
Mergers and acquisitions of media companies is an area squarely in the FCC’s purview, which cannot be said of Section 230 and more tech-adjacent regulation that have also been Carr hobbyhorses.
—Steven Zeitchik, HollywoodReporter, 3 Apr. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hobbyhorse
Noun
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Choose a single topic or hobby to explore, then map a simple schedule for research or practice.—
Tarot.com,
Baltimore Sun,
30 Mar. 2026
-
Upstairs, the layout and square footage impress and make room for everything from family to guests and hobbies.—
Miriam Schwartz,
Hartford Courant,
29 Mar. 2026
Noun
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In the Pomona case, O'Malley said that officers had to weigh the costs of continuing the pursuit.—
Tom Wait,
CBS News,
3 Apr. 2026
-
Most families here are descendants of settlers from Ireland and England who came in pursuit of cod 300-plus years ago.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
2 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
White, though, knows that Charlotte has underachieved for many years in the two best revenue-generating sports on his and almost every college campus — football and men’s basketball.—
Scott Fowler,
Charlotte Observer,
2 Apr. 2026
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In 2020, Idaho passed a first-in-the-nation law barring trans women and girls from participating in women’s and girls sports.—
Becca Savransky,
Idaho Statesman,
2 Apr. 2026
Noun
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As Sottile sees it, the dog-show economy thrives on dog lovers’ sense of avocation.—
Kelli María Korducki,
HubSpot,
6 Feb. 2026
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My vocation as a writer and editor and my avocation as a gardener and composter go hand in hand.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
18 Sep. 2025
Noun
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But then Bennett later pulled the same trick at the Beverly Hilton hotel, to McCartney’s amusement.—
Althea Legaspi,
Rolling Stone,
29 Mar. 2026
-
No one wants to be a jester, debasing oneself for a more powerful person’s amusement.—
Spencer Kornhaber,
The Atlantic,
27 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Hobbyhorse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hobbyhorse. Accessed 5 Apr. 2026.
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