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Glite Dictionary
to push around

to push around

66 5.6
To treat someone in a bossy way so they do what you want
  • phrasal verb
  • /pʊʃ əˈraʊnd/
  • Informal
translation icon : mandonear
  • You like letting your dad push you around?

We sit back and we let sheep push us around because we're peaceful.

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Examples

  • Don't let them push you around like that.

    The Invisible (2007)

  • No more pushing me around!

    King Solomon's Mines (1985)

  • Ever since I was a little girl, I let other people push me around.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • How long are you gonna let them push you around?!

    Fiction book (1991)

  • If someone is pushing you around, you need to be able to say no.

  • And if I give him the impression that he can push me around, he'll start making more demands.

    Fiction book (1999)

  • You don't like being dominated, being pushed around by other people.

  • I'm not some small-time punk you can just push around anymore.

    The Bricklayer (2023)

  • I see myself as a principled person who doesn't get pushed around relative to what I believe is right.

  • Don't let anyone push around your ideas in the meeting; stand up for what you believe.

Synonyms

to give someone a hard time
vsto push around
  • Informal
90 3.9

Make someone feel bad by criticizing or teasing them

focuses more on active domineering control rather than general difficulty
to bully
vsto push around
  • Offensive
68 3.8

To scare or hurt someone, often someone weaker

is about bossy or unfair treatment rather than only threats
to boss around
vsto push around
  • Informal
37 4.5

Tell people what to do in a rude way when you have no right

is more about mistreating someone unfairly rather than only ordering them
to strong-arm
vsto push around
  • NSFW
15 7.5

To force someone to do something by threats or violence

is about unfair treatment without necessarily using force or threats
to kick around
vsto push around
  • NSFW
10 7.5

Treat someone badly and unfairly again and again

emphasizes repeated mistreatment rather than direct ordering or intimidation
to browbeat
vsto push around
9 8.1

To make someone do something by threatening them or using angry words

is broader, covering unfair treatment beyond only harsh words
to throw one's weight around
vsto push around
  • Informal
5 7.5

To use your power to make others do what you want

is about treating others unfairly regardless of having formal power
to hector
vsto push around
3 8.4

To be bossy and scare someone into doing what you want

is similar but focuses on unfair treatment rather than only intimidation
to bullyrag
vsto push around
  • Offensive
9.9

To frighten or shout at someone to make them do what you want

is similar but can be less about constant scolding and more general mistreatment
to ballyrag
vsto push around
  • Archaic
9.9

Make someone feel bad by bossing or bullying them

is the same idea but often implies rough teasing rather than formal pressure

How Bossy

to bully
  • Offensive
68 3.8
to push around
  • Informal
66 5.6
to boss around
  • Informal
37 4.5

Surface Forms

push around infinitive
pushed around past
pushed around past participle
pushing around present participle
pushes around third person singular

Morphology

push + around

The sense 'to boss or bully someone' is a natural metaphorical extension of 'push' (to force or move) combined with 'around' (in various directions), so a learner who knows both words can often infer the idea of exerting control or pressure. However, the pragmatic nuance of repeated/emotional mistreatment and the phrasal-verb construction make the exact meaning less fully predictable without prior exposure, placing it between compositional and idiomatic.

Etymology

Push around comes from a simple picture: one person uses their hands to push another person around, moving them where they do not want to go. That's why it means 'to boss or bully someone'.