ramrod
Americannoun
verb (used with object)
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to exert discipline and authority on.
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to strike or injure with or as if with a ramrod.
-
to accomplish or put into action by force, intimidation, etc..
to ramrod a bill through Congress.
noun
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a rod for cleaning the barrel of a rifle or other small firearms
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a rod for ramming in the charge of a muzzle-loading firearm
Etymology
Origin of ramrod
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.
He said there were doctors in Oklahoma City that could take a crippled leg and straighten it out as straight as a ramrod.
From Literature
Mom’s sitting ramrod straight in her chair, twisting her hands in her lap.
From Literature
The soul of the movie is in watching these ramrod opposites bend and intertwine.
From Los Angeles Times
General Kitson was short and stocky, with a ramrod posture and a high, nasal voice.
From New York Times
The other side to that stubbornness: ramrod determination and an unsinking resilience.
From Los Angeles Times
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.
