as in categorizing
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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Recent Examples of pigeonholing
The researchers, led by Arne Güllich of RPTU Kaiserlautern-Landau in Germany, noted that prodigies often specialized in a single discipline, pigeonholing themselves in a particular field early in life.
—
Jake Angelo, Fortune, 9 Jan. 2026
The broader appeal and usefulness of the Dashaway eCT are just too dramatic to dedicate more time pigeonholing himself into a restrictive niche.
—New Atlas, 28 Oct. 2025
Leibovitz has always resisted pigeonholing.
—Y-Jean Mun-Delsalle, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2025
Jake Angelo, Fortune, 9 Jan. 2026
The broader appeal and usefulness of the Dashaway eCT are just too dramatic to dedicate more time pigeonholing himself into a restrictive niche.
—New Atlas, 28 Oct. 2025
Leibovitz has always resisted pigeonholing.
—Y-Jean Mun-Delsalle, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pigeonholing
Verb
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Budgeting apps like Empower and Monarch connect to your bank account and credit cards, automatically tracking and categorizing your transactions.—
Jasmin Suknanan,
CNBC,
10 Feb. 2026
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The United States justified its attack on Caracas by categorizing it as a law enforcement operation against Maduro.—
Francesca Chambers,
USA Today,
10 Jan. 2026
Verb
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This means OpenAI is essentially classifying the model as capable enough at coding to potentially facilitate significant cyber harm, especially if automated or used at scale.—
Beatrice Nolan,
Fortune,
10 Feb. 2026
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Young Women’s Leadership Academy has students in grades 6-12 and has an 85% minority population, with 65% of total students classifying as Hispanic and 20% as African-American.—
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
30 Jan. 2026
Verb
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White settlers and corporations quickly swooped in to tap into the vast natural riches of these new territories, relegating the original inhabitants to being strangers in their own land.—
Gustavo Arellano,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Feb. 2026
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But she’s done relegating herself to supporting roles only.—
Kat Moon,
Time,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Hurzeler’s side are down to 14th, the same number of points (eight) separating them from West Ham in the relegation zone and Brentford in seventh.—
Andy Naylor,
New York Times,
9 Feb. 2026
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Management also said that Viasat continues to evaluate strategic options, which include potentially separating the company’s government and commercial businesses.—
Liz Napolitano,
CNBC,
6 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The announcement by Mohsin Naqvi came a day after a regional affiliate of the Islamic State group, identifying itself as Islamic State in Pakistan, claimed responsibility in a statement carried by its Amaq News Agency.—
MUNIR AHMED,
Arkansas Online,
8 Feb. 2026
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The mistake people outside the fungi community or beginners make when identifying mushrooms is solely relying on social media, a field guide or an app like iNaturalist, said Bob Cummings, a leading mycology expert in Santa Barbara.—
Karen Garcia,
Los Angeles Times,
8 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Pigeonholing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pigeonholing. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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