bullied 1 of 2

adjective

as in intimidated

Related Words

Relevance

bullied

2 of 2

verb

past tense of bully
1
as in abused
to inflict physical or emotional harm upon the kindergarten teacher explained why it was wrong to bully classmates

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in frightened
to make timid or fearful by or as if by threats the manager was fired for bullying employees

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 bullied
Verb
His descriptions of being bullied in high school for his sexuality resemble plotlines from Very Special Episodes of TV, and his relationship with his ailing father is similarly generic. — Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 23 Sep. 2026 Yes, Stark has painted, or, more accurately, anodized, powder-coated, and otherwise bullied into submission just about everything to black. — New Atlas, 16 Sep. 2026 Newcastle were not only beaten, but they were also bullied and battered into submission — physically overpowered and outplayed in every facet. — Chris Waugh, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2026 What Changing Schools Fixes Amy Mosset, MPCC, RPC, a counselor and founder of Interactive Counselling, starts with what a move to a new school reliably accomplishes for a kid who is being bullied. — Ash Jurberg, Parents, 13 Sep. 2026 Three current and former SEIU California executive directors, all women of color, told Brennand that Regan had bullied them, the report said. — Taryn Luna, Los Angeles Times, 11 Sep. 2026 So much about the two circumstances is different, many of them instituted by Key because of losses like the one to Pitt (though that makes getting bullied by Colorado only more perplexing). — Ken Sugiura, AJC.com, 9 Sep. 2026 Elon was often bullied at school, Errol describes, and once his son was beaten so badly his face was unrecognizable. — Nick Vivarelli, Variety, 8 Sep. 2026 Vazquez wrote of being bullied and of years of ridicule and rejection. — Teri Figueroa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 31 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bullied
  1. intimidated
  2. abused
  3. frightened
  4. oppressed
  5. tortured
  6. browbeaten
  7. crushed
  8. downtrodden
Adjective
  • Romania's Directorate for the Investigation of Organized Crime and Terrorism accused Andrew Tate of having sex with two minors and alleged that Tristan Tate helped his brother and intimidated victims.
    — Bill Chappell, NPR, 9 Sep. 2026
  • The biggest hurdle, though, is simply believing the Elle Woods who learns to prove her doubters wrong at 16 would be so intimidated when faced with doing it again at 22.
    — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 29 June 2026
Definition of intimidated
Verb
  • Ireland forward Adam Idah, who is Black, was allegedly racially abused by a small number of Israeli fans present during the first match.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 5 Oct. 2026
  • The girl was found in Mexico along with her father, 38-year-old Sergio Galvez Perez, who authorities allege abused and impregnated her.
    — Jasmine Mendez, Los Angeles Times, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of abused
Verb
  • The stranger’s hollow cheeks, his dark eyes, whose lashes always appeared wet, the bony shoulders that protruded from the singlet Chee Meng had lent him—all of it frightened Shawn.
    — Rachel Heng, New Yorker, 4 Oct. 2026
  • Families confronting a devastating diagnosis may already be frightened, grieving and overwhelmed.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of frightened
Adjective
  • Roosevelt’s patrician upbringing, as well as ties to her husband’s career, led to certain frictions between the two, with Murray consistently urging the First Lady to act on behalf of Black Americans and other oppressed peoples.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 2 Oct. 2026
  • All of us artists could stand to be more like Mark, willing to speak out for oppressed people everywhere, even when powerful people try to bully us into silence.
    — Abid Rahman, HollywoodReporter, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of oppressed
Verb
  • But unlike other Floridians of Cuban descent — including Secretary of State Marco Rubio — Valdes ended up defending Cuba’s socialist revolutionaries and officials who have killed, jailed, tortured, and censored numerous political enemies.
    — Hudson Crozier, The Washington Examiner, 9 Oct. 2026
  • Prosecutors allege Maduro ordered political opponents detained and tortured, received regular updates on interrogations and instructed officials to intensify abuse.
    — Alice Gainer, CBS News, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of tortured
Adjective
  • At times during the inquiry hearings, the nurses were almost browbeaten into accepting the inquiry’s premise.
    — Rachel Aviv, New Yorker, 18 Sep. 2026
  • Audiences who endured the Miramax era have been browbeaten to believe that the best picture Oscar should go to a period piece that chokes out a sob from audiences.
    — Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 22 Jan. 2026
Definition of browbeaten
Adjective
  • But once assembly was complete the pit was very sturdy, and my wife and I were easily able to carry it between my porch and a crushed-stone section of my backyard that usually holds a firepit, trying it in both places.
    — Noah Kaufman, Architectural Digest, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Pike took a piece of the victim's crushed skull as a trophy and later showed it off in school, recounting that Slemmer had begged the trio to stop, according to court records.
    — Michael Ruiz, FOXNews.com, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of crushed
Adjective
  • Living a dozen miles from their closest neighbor (who has a grudge with Lester), even further from the closest town (a downtrodden shell of its former self), and further still from any sort of hope — or temptation.
    — David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 4 Sep. 2026
  • In the end, a downtrodden Sporting side came close to picking up an upset win but settled for a 1-1 draw.
    — PJ Green, Kansas City Star, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of downtrodden

Browse Nearby Words

bullheadedness
bullied
bullies
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Bullied.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bullied. Accessed 11 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of galore

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

The Words of the Week - Oct. 9

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
a cup of tea and a golf ball on tee side by side
Quiz: Sounds Like... Choose the word that sounds like it fits the clue...
See All