bludgeon

American  

[bluhj-uhn] / ˈblʌdʒ ən /

noun

1. a short, heavy club with one end weighted, or thicker and heavier than the other.

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verb (used with object)

1. to strike or knock down with a bludgeon.

2. to force into something; coerce; bully.

   The boss finally bludgeoned him into accepting responsibility.

bludgeon British  

/ ˈblʌdʒən /

noun

1. a stout heavy club, typically thicker at one end

2. a person, line of argument, etc, that is effective but unsubtle

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verb

1. to hit or knock down with or as with a bludgeon

2. (often foll by into) to force; bully; coerce

   they bludgeoned him into accepting the job

Other Word Forms

• bludgeoneer noun
• bludgeoner noun

Etymology

Origin of bludgeon

First recorded in 1720–30; origin uncertain

Explanation

As a noun, a bludgeon refers to a heavy club used as a weapon. Synonyms for bludgeon include truncheon, nightstick, cudgel, and billy club. The verb bludgeon developed from the noun form. It means to strike repeatedly with a heavy club or similar weapon. If you have a cockroach invasion in your kitchen, you might be tempted to bludgeon the insects with a rolled up newspaper every time you turn on the lights. The verb bludgeon is also used metaphorically to mean to roughly coerce or force someone to do something as if you had a bludgeon. If your boss is a bully, he may bludgeon you and the other employees into working long hours for little recognition.

Example Sentences

“It’s because governments usually resort to blunt instruments, opting for the bludgeon of sweeping tariffs and subsidies over the scalpel of industrial parks and skills development programs.”

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 17, 2026

Rather than brainwashing us, the objective of the totalitarian is to bludgeon us into apathy, resignation and passivity.

From Salon • May 24, 2025

They were in the game when the hosts stuttered to 137-5 after 17 overs, only for Tahlia McGrath and Grace Harris to bludgeon their way to 185-5.

From BBC • Jan. 23, 2025

I think to love history and not just cherry-pick it to use as a bludgeon, you have to love complexity.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 15, 2023

—William Cowper Innumeracy, Freud, and Pseudoscience Innumeracy and pseudoscience are often associated, in part because of the ease with which mathematical certainty can be invoked to bludgeon the innumerate into a dumb acquiescence.

From "Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences" by John Allen Paulos