pigeonholed

verb

past tense of pigeonhole
as in categorized
disapproving to unfairly think of or describe (someone or something) as belonging to only a certain category She likes to perform different types of music because she doesn't want to be pigeonholed.

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of pigeonholed It's not just pigeonholed into one spot. — Tax Notes Staff, Forbes.com, 23 June 2026 Hamill could not always avoid being pigeonholed. — Sanat Pai Raikar, Encyclopedia Britannica, 24 Mar. 2026 Executives had pigeonholed her as a rom-com queen. — New York Times, 14 Mar. 2026 German actors abroad are often pigeonholed as villains. — Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 17 May 2026 Conversations are cut down, some couples are poised to be the favorites, while other contestants get pigeonholed as the villains. — Alyssa Goldberg, USA Today, 1 June 2026 That way, you’re not pigeonholed into redeeming your rewards exclusively through Delta. — Sarah Hostetler, CNBC, 5 June 2026 The best sci-fi games are often pigeonholed into specific genres like shooters, strategy games, and RPGs, and for good reason; franchises like Mass Effect, StarCraft, and Half-Life are all-time classics. — Keith Langston, Space.com, 31 May 2026 At 46, Kate Hudson has secured a Best Actress Oscar nomination for Song Sung Blue, marking a dramatic career shift 25 years after her first nomination and years of being pigeonholed as Hollywood’s rom-com leading lady. — Ryan Brennan, Charlotte Observer, 24 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pigeonholed
  1. categorized
  2. classified
  3. relegated
  4. separated
  5. identified
Verb
  • Countrywide, wine, beer, spirits and other newer forms of alcohol are categorized according to beverage type and are taxed often regardless of actual alcohol content or other states’ policies.
    — Adam Hoffer, Chicago Tribune, 5 July 2026
  • The study also categorized unemployment claims by age and found that a significant portion of claims were from those aged 36 to 65, signaling that AI’s effect doesn’t only affect early-career jobs.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 4 July 2026
Definition of categorized
Verb
  • Even in Caracas, where only five buildings collapsed, Rodríguez said at least 30 additional structures have already been classified as unsafe.
    — Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 3 July 2026
  • Royalties and license fees are classified as ordinary income under the tax code, taxed at the same rates as wages, not the preferential long-term capital gains rates that apply to appreciated assets held over a year.
    — Shehan Chandrasekera, Forbes.com, 2 July 2026
Definition of classified
Verb
  • The network has relegated the live women’s event to ESPN+ and ESPN Unlimited, its direct-to-consumer subscription service that’s available through some TV providers.
    — Steven Louis Goldstein, New York Times, 4 July 2026
  • Using this approach, the SynMax system, called Theia, enables AI to perform tasks previously relegated to intelligence analysts.
    — Zita Ballinger Fletcher, Forbes.com, 30 June 2026
Definition of relegated
Verb
  • Faster clinical brain imaging The new design removes one of the biggest bottlenecks in conventional computer architecture, where memory and processors are physically separated.
    — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 6 July 2026
  • Instead, Hargitay learned at age 30 that her bio-dad was Italian entertainer Nelson Sardelli — Giovanna Sardelli’s father — with whom Mansfield had a brief relationship while separated from Mickey Hargitay in the early 1960s.
    — Martha Ross, Mercury News, 6 July 2026
Definition of separated
Verb
  • The Wayne County Coroner's Office identified the victims as Hiteshkumar Suthar, Hinaben Suthar and Isha Suthar, according to the Akron Beacon Journal.
    — Paloma Chavez, PEOPLE, 3 July 2026
  • If your pet already has a microchip, make sure the information is up to date; sometimes, even pets with microchips can’t be identified because the phone number associated with them has been disconnected.
    — Sandra McDonald, Los Angeles Times, 3 July 2026
Definition of identified

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Cite this Entry

“Pigeonholed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pigeonholed. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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