suasion

American  

[swey-zhuhn] / ˈsweɪ ʒən /

noun

1. the act of advising, urging, or attempting to persuade; persuasion.

2. an instance of this; a persuasive effort.

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suasion British  

/ ˈsweɪʒən /

noun

1. a rare word for persuasion

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Other Word Forms

• suasive adjective
• suasively adverb
• suasiveness noun
• suasory adjective

Etymology

Origin of suasion

1325–75; Middle English < Latin suāsiōn- (stem of suāsiō ), equivalent to suās ( us ), past participle of suādēre to advise ( suād-, verb stem + -tus past participle suffix, with dt > s ) + -iōn- -ion

Example Sentences

Credit Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent for understanding this and engaging in moral suasion with foreign-exchange traders last week to help Tokyo stabilize the yen.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 28, 2026

Some will argue that self-expression is the goal, others moral suasion; some will prefer soft power to storming the barricades and some the reverse.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 23, 2024

For the rest, Washington should aggressively deploy moral suasion, trade and aid — economic as well as military.

From Washington Post • Apr. 2, 2022

You have a voice in it — a voice that can be amplified by suasion — but so do your neighbors.

From New York Times • Aug. 3, 2021

Talk about your moral suasion, I tell you there's a time when only one thing counts.

From Plain Mary Smith A Romance of Red Saunders by Phillips, Henry Wallace