as in convincing
the act of reasoning or pleading with someone to accept a belief or course of action
a defense lawyer uses not only legal arguments but also moral suasion to appeal to a jury's sense of right and wrong
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Recent Examples of suasion
Read More: Believing Myths About Aging Makes Growing Old Worse
Initially, their belief in moral suasion worked.
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Rebecca Brannon / Made By History, TIME, 3 July 2024
In this brilliant new look at the destruction of slavery during the American Civil War, Oakes reveals how the U.S. abolitionist movement relied not only on high-minded moral suasion but also on the small-bore legalistic strategy of the Republican Party.
—James Oakes, Foreign Affairs, 27 Dec. 2012
Beyond moral suasion is a clear policy against any form of discrimination that happens to be taking place.
—Alyson Shontell, Fortune, 31 Aug. 2023
As psychologist Asa Hilliard later explained, among those strategies were moral suasion, litigation, grassroots organizing, civil disobedience, economic boycotts, the solicitation of corporate sponsors and the use of television.
—Bev-Freda Jackson, The Conversation, 25 Aug. 2023
See all Example Sentences for suasion 
Rebecca Brannon / Made By History, TIME, 3 July 2024
In this brilliant new look at the destruction of slavery during the American Civil War, Oakes reveals how the U.S. abolitionist movement relied not only on high-minded moral suasion but also on the small-bore legalistic strategy of the Republican Party.
—James Oakes, Foreign Affairs, 27 Dec. 2012
Beyond moral suasion is a clear policy against any form of discrimination that happens to be taking place.
—Alyson Shontell, Fortune, 31 Aug. 2023
As psychologist Asa Hilliard later explained, among those strategies were moral suasion, litigation, grassroots organizing, civil disobedience, economic boycotts, the solicitation of corporate sponsors and the use of television.
—Bev-Freda Jackson, The Conversation, 25 Aug. 2023
See all Example Sentences for suasion
Recent Examples of Synonyms for suasion
Noun
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Carter’s trust in his own ingenuity, persistence, and persuasion, as well as his trust in God, were brought into question.Lawrence Wright, The New Yorker, 29 Dec. 2024
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Matching interests is closely related to pathos, the appeal to the emotions of the audience, and is one of the three essential elements of persuasion set down by Aristotle over two millennia ago.Jerry Weissman, Forbes, 16 Dec. 2024
Noun
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And brands like Geico collapse awareness and conversion, connecting TV ads directly to quotes via on-screen QR codes and Amazon data.Martin Kihn, Forbes, 2 Jan. 2025
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One firearm carried a machine gun conversion device, commonly called a Glock Switch.Jade Jackson, The Indianapolis Star, 31 Dec. 2024
Noun
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This time, the hot-stove sweepstakes come with a twist: Thanks to a recent court ruling, NIL deals can be used as recruiting inducements.Blake Toppmeyer, The Tennessean, 29 Mar. 2024
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Many of the tactics deployed against the party in the lead-up to the 2024 election—including politically motivated legal cases against its leaders, arrests of its workers, and inducements to candidates to switch sides—were deployed in its favor against the PML-N before elections in 2018.Sarah Khan, Foreign Affairs, 5 Mar. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near suasion
Cite this Entry
“Suasion.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/suasion. Accessed 9 Jan. 2025.
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