ironfisted
Americanadjective
-
ruthless, harsh, and tyrannical.
an ironfisted dictator.
-
stingy; tight-fisted.
Etymology
Origin of ironfisted
First recorded in 1850–55; iron + fist 1 ( def. ) + -ed 3 ( def. )
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.
Cassandra, the de-facto leader of the teens, is tenuously ironfisted.
From The New Yorker ● May 22, 2019
Leonard Nimoy did it with a memorable turn as a goateed, ironfisted Mr. Spock in an original "Star Trek" episode that sent the Enterprise crew into a more bloodthirsty parallel universe.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 17, 2013
The cry was really meant for Paraguay's ironfisted dictator, General Alfredo Stroessner, and the Pope quietly echoed it.
From Time Magazine Archive
Szell's ironfisted discipline brooked no contradiction, and the musicians played for him as if their livelihoods -- if not their lives -- depended on it.
From Time Magazine Archive
In New Mexico, a state with a weak Governor system, he has already earned a reputation as an ironfisted leader.
From Time Magazine Archive
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.
