as in to isolate
to deliberately ignore or treat rudely
in his sad and lonely old age, he stiff-armed even once-beloved friends
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
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 stiff-arm
Andrew Greif Two stiff-arms and 24 yards later, Philadelphia tight end Dallas Goedert turned a second-and-1 situation into a touchdown for the Eagles.
—
NBC News, 13 Jan. 2025
They stiff-arm congressional subpoenas or demands for information with spurious claims of state secrets, executive privilege or unwritten tradition.
—Bruce Fein, Baltimore Sun, 9 Jan. 2025
There was more than a grain of truth to the lament by Pence and company that the Democrats in Washington were stiff-arming comprehensive immigration legislation backed by Republicans and the Trump administration.
—John C. Moritz, Austin American-Statesman, 11 Feb. 2024
Washington’s offense still controlled the ball and clock enough, however, to stiff-arm the Giants’ late push away.
—Pat Leonard, Hartford Courant, 3 Nov. 2024
McIntosh once again showcased his burst and contact balance, fighting through defenders, stiff-arming tacklers and falling forward to generate explosive runs.
—Michael-Shawn Dugar, The Athletic, 17 Aug. 2024
Pearsall turned upfield and raced Antoine Winfield Jr. down the sideline, stiff-arming the Tampa Bay safety and fighting off his tackle to reach the end zone just before being hauled out of bounds.
—Michael Nowels, The Mercury News, 10 Nov. 2024
In fact, the ghosting of Biden may have to become a stiff-arm from Harris herself in these final days if her bid to block Trump is to have even odds.
—Philip Elliott, TIME, 31 Oct. 2024
During the eighth day of training camp, Estime received a handoff before delivering a vicious stiff-arm on edge rusher Thomas Incoom near the sideline, generating a handful of cheers from the Broncos faithful on the berm.
—Ryan McFadden, The Denver Post, 11 Aug. 2024
NBC News, 13 Jan. 2025
They stiff-arm congressional subpoenas or demands for information with spurious claims of state secrets, executive privilege or unwritten tradition.
—Bruce Fein, Baltimore Sun, 9 Jan. 2025
There was more than a grain of truth to the lament by Pence and company that the Democrats in Washington were stiff-arming comprehensive immigration legislation backed by Republicans and the Trump administration.
—John C. Moritz, Austin American-Statesman, 11 Feb. 2024
Washington’s offense still controlled the ball and clock enough, however, to stiff-arm the Giants’ late push away.
—Pat Leonard, Hartford Courant, 3 Nov. 2024
McIntosh once again showcased his burst and contact balance, fighting through defenders, stiff-arming tacklers and falling forward to generate explosive runs.
—Michael-Shawn Dugar, The Athletic, 17 Aug. 2024
Pearsall turned upfield and raced Antoine Winfield Jr. down the sideline, stiff-arming the Tampa Bay safety and fighting off his tackle to reach the end zone just before being hauled out of bounds.
—Michael Nowels, The Mercury News, 10 Nov. 2024
In fact, the ghosting of Biden may have to become a stiff-arm from Harris herself in these final days if her bid to block Trump is to have even odds.
—Philip Elliott, TIME, 31 Oct. 2024
During the eighth day of training camp, Estime received a handoff before delivering a vicious stiff-arm on edge rusher Thomas Incoom near the sideline, generating a handful of cheers from the Broncos faithful on the berm.
—Ryan McFadden, The Denver Post, 11 Aug. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stiff-arm
Verb
-
Many users joined the app in early 2020, when the Covid-19 pandemic was otherwise isolating them from community and other creative outlets.—
Clare Duffy,
CNN,
19 Jan. 2025
-
White Anglo-Saxon Protestants used racist stereotypes about immigrants and alcohol to limit their access to it and isolate them from their communities and cultures.—
Sam Woodward,
USA TODAY,
17 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
Yip says features and design elements, everything like a pocket placement to how a jacket may work with gloves—or even how smooth or stiff the zipper sliding action is—is all under consideration when designing.—
Tim Newcomb,
Forbes,
12 Dec. 2024
-
The dialogue was ham-handed, the performances stiff, the villain lame, the story stupid.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
19 July 2024
Verb
-
Greens, blues, and reds remain masculine while rejecting the conventions of more conservative styles.—
Ian Malone,
Vogue,
18 Jan. 2025
-
While the Obama administration rejected Cheney’s outsized role for itself, Joe Biden still became a close adviser and helped achieve administration goals.—
Roy Brownell,
Baltimore Sun,
18 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
Challenged and Denounced Millions were repulsed by Mr. Le Pen’s statements.—
Robert D. McFadden,
New York Times,
7 Jan. 2025
-
Today, Ukrainian troops repulsed yet another attack by the 810th Naval Infantry Brigade around Pogrebki, the Ukrainian Center for Defense Strategies reported.—
David Axe,
Forbes,
7 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
Each student will receive a collection of cut flower seeds for the Spring season.—
Joe Rassel,
Orlando Sentinel,
22 Jan. 2025
-
Releasing fullback Alec Ingold after June 1 would cut his 2025 Dolphins cap hit from $4.9 million to $1.2 million.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
22 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
Numerous attempts to break to new heights were repelled, pushing the price back to previous support levels.—
David Keller,
CNBC,
23 Jan. 2025
-
He is dressed in a pilgrim’s fur overcoat to repel rain and retain warmth.—
Virginia Raguin,
The Conversation,
21 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
Despite its strong showing, director Jon M. Chu and the film's screenplay were notably snubbed, missing key categories like Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay.—
Amanda Castro,
Newsweek,
23 Jan. 2025
-
What was the excuse for snubbing his work on Conclave, the kind of craft-heavy, visually appealing filmmaking the Academy often favors?—
Nate Jones,
Vulture,
23 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
Liska and Copper’s text also, uncomfortably, makes constant, slighting reference to Bachrach’s body.—
Helen Shaw,
The New Yorker,
13 Dec. 2024
-
The deference being shown to the Big Ten and SEC conferences isn’t sitting well with some outsiders, who feel they are being slighted by the CFP selection committee.—
Kevin Dotson,
CNN,
19 Nov. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near stiff-arm
Cite this Entry
“Stiff-arm.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stiff-arm. Accessed 1 Feb. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share