cornered
Americanadjective
-
having corners (usually used in combination).
a six-cornered room.
-
having a given number of positions; sided (usually used in combination).
a four-cornered debate.
-
forced into an awkward, embarrassing, or inescapable position.
a cornered debater; a cornered fox.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of cornered
Middle English word dating back to 1300–50; see origin at corner, -ed 3
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
A leadership that feels cornered may escalate rather than accommodate.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 27, 2026
Police officers followed and cornered the horse on motorbikes, before it was wrangled by a lasso-carrying cowboy.
From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2026
Harrison thought he had the animal cornered between two cars at one point, but no such luck — it slipped away.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026
On June 29, when another tremor cornered Gil even further, teams from El Salvador and Costa Rica entered through a parking lot connected to the area where they believed Gil was.
From Barron's ● Jul. 7, 2026
It took Inigo until 5:41 before he actually cornered the Count.
From "The Princess Bride" by William Goldman
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