US /ˈhɛktər/ UK /ˈhɛktə/
verb noun

Meanings

  1. 1
    verb

    to bully or intimidate with bluster; a swaggering bully

    He would hector the clerks until they did as he wished.

Thesaurus

Synonyms
1 verb · to bully or intimidate with... bullyintimidatebrowbeatblusterbadgerdomineer
Opposites
Word family
Forms hectoring
Derived forms hectoringhectored

Etymology

From the name of Hector, the Trojan hero of Homer's Iliad; via seventeenth-century slang for a swaggering bully or street ruffian, the name passed into a verb.

Topics

markdown

Send feedback

Optional — only if you'd like a reply.