as in to control
chiefly US
to try to oversee all the small parts of (something, such as an activity) in a way that is usually not wanted or that causes problems
He micromanaged every detail of the budget.
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Recent Examples of micromanage
Kids desperately want to be able to explore and play without adults micromanaging them, Skenazy says.
—
Charlotte Alter, Time, 5 Sep. 2025
The incessant crackdowns, and the campaigns of censorship or censoriousness, suggest that the Chinese regime is intent on not just eliminating opposition, but also micromanaging its people’s lifestyles, consumption, and beliefs.
—Michael Schuman, The Atlantic, 26 Aug. 2025
That doesn’t mean burning out or micromanaging every detail.
—Dossé-Via Trenou, Refinery29, 24 Aug. 2025
In his exit memo, Bennett urged the commission to avoid micromanaging the negotiation process and instead focus on big-picture policy, public engagement and trust-building.
—Kelly Davis, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for micromanage
Charlotte Alter, Time, 5 Sep. 2025
The incessant crackdowns, and the campaigns of censorship or censoriousness, suggest that the Chinese regime is intent on not just eliminating opposition, but also micromanaging its people’s lifestyles, consumption, and beliefs.
—Michael Schuman, The Atlantic, 26 Aug. 2025
That doesn’t mean burning out or micromanaging every detail.
—Dossé-Via Trenou, Refinery29, 24 Aug. 2025
In his exit memo, Bennett urged the commission to avoid micromanaging the negotiation process and instead focus on big-picture policy, public engagement and trust-building.
—Kelly Davis, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for micromanage
Recent Examples of Synonyms for micromanage
Verb
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The conglomerate, which often aligns itself with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s development goals and controls vast swathes of India’s infrastructure sector, is yet to fully recover from the market value erosion caused by the short seller’s accusations.—
Dave Smith,
Fortune,
19 Sep. 2025
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New frontiers in medical use The ability to control the metamaterial remotely makes new medical applications possible.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
19 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The most visible are those in customer service and support, with AI agents now handling millions of customer interactions once handled by live agents over chat, email and even phone.—
Hugh Cameron,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 Sep. 2025
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There’s also some discussion of how to handle characters with alternate forms, such as Bruce Banner and the Incredible Hulk.—
Rob Wieland,
Forbes.com,
17 Sep. 2025
Verb
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In this approach, quantum information is encoded in various properties of photons, and computation is performed by manipulating these photonic states using optical components.—
Gil Press,
Forbes.com,
16 Sep. 2025
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Tahoe is obviously getting more aggressive with icon-shape enforcement, up to and including automatically manipulating them and sentencing them to icon jail.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
15 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Instead of predictive policing that reinforces existing biases, envision AI that helps communities understand and address root causes of social problems.—
Cornelia C. Walther,
Forbes.com,
16 Sep. 2025
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Save from isolated slip-ups, all addressed by and mended with the captain, there were no big issues.—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
16 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Many countries have sought to negotiate to remove or reduce the tariffs, some have made deals, while others have enforced counter tariffs.—
Ross O'Keefe,
The Washington Examiner,
19 Sep. 2025
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The Blackhawks and Kaiser’s agent had been negotiating for some time this offseason, but neither side had been in a rush, with the 23-year-old Kaiser having no arbitration rights.—
Scott Powers,
New York Times,
18 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Vicencio’s criminal history in the county outlines struggles with mental health, and legal trouble over gun possession; he was supervised under the court’s mental-health treatment division for much of 2022.—
Robert Salonga,
Mercury News,
19 Sep. 2025
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After that, the rtw was designed by a team supervised by managing director Georgina Brandolini.—
Lily Templeton,
Footwear News,
19 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Your liver also plays the very sweet role of regulating your blood sugar levels by releasing glucose and storing glycogen when appropriate.—
Bruce Y. Lee,
Forbes.com,
16 Sep. 2025
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Among its 14 plant oils are argan kernel and rice bran, which regulate sebum production and loosen dead skin cells, respectively—and, together, leave your pores looking significantly smaller and your skin significantly smoother.—
Sophia Panych,
Allure,
16 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Each of us takes about twenty thousand breaths every single day—twenty thousand chances for the air around us to either sustain life or to quietly harm it.—
Bill Frist,
Forbes.com,
18 Sep. 2025
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In a video taken by a security camera at his mother's driveway, obtained by ABC News, a federal agent can be heard asking Gamez Lira to turn off the engine and to not resist.—
Armando Garcia,
ABC News,
18 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Micromanage.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/micromanage. Accessed 21 Sep. 2025.
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