heavy-handed
adjective
oppressive; harsh.
heavy-handedness
-
a word derived from
heavy-handed.
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.
Xi appears to understand the lesson from the 1960s, when Soviet heavy-handedness toward China as the “younger brother” helped fracture that earlier alliance.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
Despite its heavy-handedness, the Emergency was seen by some as a period of order and efficiency.
From BBC ● Jun. 24, 2025
District Judge David O. Carter, a no less colorful figure than Yagman, has built a reputation for judicial unorothodoxy bordering on heavy-handedness.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 16, 2024
Though that’s perfectly valid in theory, the heavy-handedness is quite a surprise coming from Parks, whose greatest plays float at the midpoint between archetype and individual.
From New York Times ● Mar. 15, 2023
He appealed strongly to all that was worst in Roman taste—its heavy-handedness, its admiration of verbal cleverness, its tendency towards brutality.
From Latin Literature by J. W. (John William) Mackail
