as in oppressive
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Recent Examples of Synonyms for ironhanded
Adjective
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In many areas along and east of the Mississippi River, heat index values could soar to between 110 and 115 degrees — the kind of oppressive heat that can quickly turn dangerous without proper precautions.—
Brandi D. Addison,
Austin American Statesman,
23 July 2025 -
Sweltering under a heat dome that brought oppressive triple-digit temperatures and humidity to large swaths of the Midwest and East Coast, average daily highs in Chicago topped 84.1 degrees in June, 3.7 degrees above normal.—
Robert Channick,
Chicago Tribune,
22 July 2025
Adjective
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Michigan's Lower Peninsula is expected to see potentially severe weather on July 24, with rain developing over the Upper Peninsula as well.—
Sarah Moore,
Freep.com,
25 July 2025
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The chronic disease can cause severe symptoms like extreme pain and in some cases contribute to infertility.—
Health Reporter,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 July 2025
Adjective
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Lamont, who had proposed boosting special education aid by $40 million — but not until July 2026 — countered that the state budget already was on pace to exceed the budget cap and that legislators needed to make tough choices and trim spending.—
Keith M. Phaneuf,
Hartford Courant,
2 Aug. 2025
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Proper handwashing is tough when the handwash sink doesn’t have any hot water.—
David J. Neal
August 1,
Miami Herald,
1 Aug. 2025
Adjective
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The trappings of the Senate were another world from Mr. Abourezk’s rough-and-tumble childhood on the Rosebud Indian Reservation, where his Lebanese parents had immigrated and ran a general store.—
STEPHEN GROVES,
BostonGlobe.com,
25 Feb. 2023
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The startup’s rough-and-tumble experiments are even more telling.—
Justine Calma,
The Verge,
24 Feb. 2023
Adjective
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But going back to trying to be gentle in ungentle times.—
Stephanie Stradley,
Houston Chronicle,
25 Sep. 2020
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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
Adjective
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But she and the remaining Storm family members are swept up into an inheritance game – her father’s last wish, organized by her father’s stern, handsome right-hand man.—
Clare Mulroy,
USA Today,
31 July 2025
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Photo by Eakin Howard/Getty Images With the matchup looming large as the 2025 season continues to draw closer, one of Rodgers' former teammates on the Jets has spoken out with a stern warning to him.—
Evan Massey,
MSNBC Newsweek,
29 July 2025
Adjective
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Then Pike makes another grim discovery: a desiccated human leg.—
Keith Phipps,
Vulture,
31 July 2025
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The hunger alert and the new death toll are grim milestones in a conflict that began almost two years ago when Hamas attacked Israel, sparking an offensive that has laid waste to much of the enclave and ignited hostilities across the region.—
USA Today,
USA Today,
28 July 2025
Adjective
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Men, Women, and Children (2014) Sandler is a revelation in a painfully heavy-handed satire.—
Jesse David Fox,
Vulture,
30 July 2025
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Meta’s response reflects a broader clash: Big Tech and the Trump administration see EU oversight as heavy-handed and antagonistic, with US president Donald Trump brandishing tariff threats to push back against the bloc’s digital regulations.—
Matthew Martin,
semafor.com,
28 July 2025
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“Ironhanded.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ironhanded. Accessed 5 Aug. 2025.
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