🗣️ To nag or control 🙇 A controlled man 🗣️ Persistent nagging

henpeck

9.1

Constant criticism or control of a partner that wears them down

noun
/ˈhɛnˌpɛk/

Archaic

: regañina

He felt the constant henpeck at home was wearing him down.

Examples

The movie portrayed a character who suffered from endless henpeck by his spouse.
He experienced persistent henpeck from his wife about his spending habits.
Some people believe that henpeck can damage a relationship over time.
His friends often joked about his henpeck behavior.
She doesn't want to be seen as a henpeck wife.
Many couples struggle with henpeck, leading to conflicts in their relationship.
Her friends warned her that constant henpeck could harm her marriage.

Synonyms

nagging

vshenpeck

36 4.6

Always complaining in an irritating way

is aimed specifically at a partner and seeks to control or criticize them

shrewishness

vshenpeck

Offensive

1 9.9

Being often angry and criticizing others in a harsh, nagging way

is the persistent controlling or criticizing behavior aimed at a partner

Antonyms

to support

∞ 1.0

Give help to a person or idea

How Controlling

domination

90 4.7

henpeck

Archaic

9.1

nagging

36 4.6

criticism

649 3.0

Surface Forms

henpeck singular

henpecks plural

Morphology

henpeck = hen + peck (semi-transparent) = hen + peck

The phrase 'hen peck' clearly motivates the idea of repeated pecking, but its use to mean 'persistent nagging' is an idiomatic extension.

Etymology

Henpeck comes from the picture of a hen that pecks, which means 'to poke or bite again and again', and so the word also means the act of constant nagging or control in a relationship.