wheedle
to endeavor to influence (a person) by smooth, flattering, or beguiling words or acts: We wheedled him incessantly, but he would not consent.
to persuade (a person) by such words or acts: She wheedled him into going with her.
to obtain (something) by artful persuasions: I wheedled a new car out of my father.
to use beguiling or artful persuasions: I always wheedle if I really need something.
Origin of wheedle
1Other words for wheedle
Other words from wheedle
- whee·dler, noun
- whee·dling·ly, adverb
- un·whee·dled, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use wheedle in a sentence
He stormed and wheedled, threatened and bribed; the obnoxious instrument was constantly brandished before his eyes.
Alone | Marion HarlandMarian undoubtedly wheedled her father a good deal in the manner of handsome and willful daughters.
A Hoosier Chronicle | Meredith NicholsonIt was clear that Spain could neither be wheedled, cajoled, nor threatened into even passive acquiescence in the new conquest.
The Life of Napoleon Bonaparte | William Milligan Sloane"Let me try it on," wheedled Marjorie, coaxing down his arm.
Four Days | Hetty HemenwayShe had banished him, threatened him, wheedled him out of victory.
The Devil's Asteroid | Manly Wade Wellman
British Dictionary definitions for wheedle
/ (ˈwiːdəl) /
to persuade or try to persuade (someone) by coaxing words, flattery, etc
(tr) to obtain by coaxing and flattery: she wheedled some money out of her father
Origin of wheedle
1Derived forms of wheedle
- wheedler, noun
- wheedling, adjective
- wheedlingly, adverb
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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