belabor

[ bih-ley-ber ]

verb (used with object)

1. to explain, worry about, or work at (something) repeatedly or more than is necessary:

   He kept belaboring the point long after we had agreed.

2. to assail persistently, as with scorn or ridicule:

   a book that belabors the provincialism of his contemporaries.

3. to beat vigorously; ply with heavy blows.
4. Obsolete. to labor at.

Word History and Origins

Origin of belabor¹

First recorded in 1590–1600; be- + labor

Example Sentences

To belabor the comparison a bit, the same could be said for the American Dream.

From The Daily Beast

And she chose the dinner party where he was the guest to belabor him with this abuse.

From The Daily Beast

And finally, not to belabor it, there was the Palin nomination.

From The Daily Beast

He threw his right arm upward as if to escape a blow, but the old dame did not belabor him.

From Project Gutenberg

An old woman, standing by our camp, continued to belabor a good-looking young man for hours with her tongue.

From Project Gutenberg

The northerners strike the back of the rim with their sticks, while the Yukon people belabor the face of the drum.

From Project Gutenberg

Presently, when the couch was a wreck and Bob had Frank over his knees and was preparing to belabor him, Jack interfered.

From Project Gutenberg

An old man stood up and began to belabor the frightened animal.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• rehash