intimidation
Americannoun
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the act of inducing fear or awe.
The true motive of most street harassment is intimidation.
-
the act or process of attempting to force or deter an action by inducing fear.
She spoke passionately about the violence and intimidation suffered by African Americans in Mississippi seeking to register to vote.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of intimidation
Explanation
Intimidation is when you try to frighten a weaker person into doing what you want. You might use intimidation to get your brother to mow the lawn for you. Intimidation can refer to the act of making someone feel timid or afraid — like what you sometimes do to your brother — or it can also refer to that fearful feeling itself. Intimidation might make members of a jury hesitate to convict a defendant. Intimidation can also refer to feeling threatened, discouraged, or afraid because you're facing something stronger or superior. You might feel a sense of intimidation right before your soccer team plays the undefeated state champs.
Vocabulary lists containing intimidation
"The Hill We Climb," by Amanda Gorman
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Cesar Chavez's Commonwealth Club Address (1984)
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Because They Marched
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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.
"We live in a democracy. There are acceptable ways to express your opposition. Intimidation is not one of them."
From BBC • Oct. 9, 2025
Intimidation is the enemy of curiosity, and anyone Lynch’s work has touched knows that all it takes is a little nudge over the threshold to fall headfirst into his world.
From Salon • Jan. 25, 2025
Intimidation isn’t something I’ve felt in a dispensary setting for a very long time.
From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 14, 2022
“And, of course, that has consequences. Intimidation, basically.”
From New York Times • Mar. 31, 2022
It was all part of the rite, all part of the image, all part of the Intimidation Trip.
From "Friday Night Lights: A Town, A Team, And A Dream" by H.G. Bissinger
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
