cajolery means the act or practice of cajoling; cajolement. It carries an Arena rating of 1627, earned across 46 head-to-head judged battles.
Among words judged in Lexicurio's Arena, cajolery ranks #959 of 13,225 for Most Malleable Words, #2,709 of 13,225 for Words That Escaped Their Books, #4,163 of 13,225 for Most Satisfying to Say, #4,353 of 13,225 for Most Incisive Words.
cajolery is pronounced /kəˈd͡ʒoʊ.lə.ɹi/.
Why “cajolery” is a great word
CAJOLERY — [Noun] The act or practice of persuading someone through flattery, coaxing, or delusive promises. From French cajolerie, from cajoler (to coax, wheedle) + -erie (-ery, forming nouns of action or practice). First attested in English 1640–50. Unlike coercion, which wields force, or adulation, which offers uncalculated praise, cajolery is the tactical application of sweetness as a lever. It is the soft, insistent voice promising a child one more treat for good behavior, the honeyed compliment from a salesperson that lingers a moment too long, and the lover’s whispered assurances felt, in the gut, to be both necessary and untrue—the gentle art of convincing someone to yield by making surrender feel like their own idea.
Etymology
From French cajolerie, equivalent to cajole + -ery.
noun
- The act or practice of cajoling; cajolement.“[…] by cajolery and innuendo she had persuaded him to go to the picture palace to be cheered up, and as it was now on the turn of eleven he might be expected back at any moment.”
Words closest in meaning
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