bullybully2 ●●○ verb (past tense and past participle bullied, present participle bullying, third person singular bullies) [transitive] 
Verb Table Examples
Don’t let them bully you into working on Saturdays.—bullying noun [uncountable]: an attempt to tackle the problem of bullying in schoolsbully off phrasal verb British English to start a game of hockey—bully-off noun [countable]
Verb TableVERB TABLE
bully
| Simple Form | ||
| Present | I, you, we, they | bully |
| he, she, it | bullies | |
| Past | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | bullied |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have bullied |
| he, she, it | has bullied | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had bullied |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will bully |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have bullied |
| Continuous Form | ||
| Present | I | am bullying |
| he, she, it | is bullying | |
| you, we, they | are bullying | |
| Past | I, he, she, it | was bullying |
| you, we, they | were bullying | |
| Present perfect | I, you, we, they | have been bullying |
| he, she, it | has been bullying | |
| Past perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | had been bullying |
| Future | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will be bullying |
| Future perfect | I, you, he, she, it, we, they | will have been bullying |
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
Thesaurus- A group of girls would bully the younger kids, and force them to give them money.
- Ben didn't want to study law, but his father bullied him into it by threatening to cut off his allowance.
- Don't let the salesman bully you -- it's your choice.
- If you try and bully him into giving you the money he's sure to say no -- you should try and persuade him gently.
- Ricky used to bully the younger kids in the neighborhood.
- The court heard that the head of department would routinely bully and humiliate workers.
- All he wanted was a belly-full of berries and a chance to bully the small birds.
- Just because she was the junior on the Diary team, it didn't mean that he could constantly bully her.
Longman Language Activatorto treat a person or animal in a cruel way► be cruel to
Collocations · My father drank too much and was often very cruel to my mother.· It is unspeakably cruel to the prisoners to house them in such conditions.
► mistreat/ill-treat to deliberately treat a person or animal in a cruel way, especially when you are responsible for looking after them: · It looks as though this dog has been mistreated by its owner.· Neighbours were sure that the young couple had been ill-treating their children.
► bully to be cruel to someone who is weaker, younger, or has less authority than you: · A group of girls would bully the younger kids, and force them to give them money.· The court heard that the head of department would routinely bully and humiliate workers.
► abuse to treat someone in your family or someone you are responsible for in a cruel way, especially violently or sexually: · My father abused us for years.· Erica runs a hostel for women who have been abused by their husbands.sexually abuse (=force someone to take part in sexual activities): · Erik testified he was sexually abused by his father since the age of 6.
► persecute to be cruel to a person or group of people over a period of time, because of their race or their religious or political beliefs: · Countries all over Europe have persecuted gypsies for centuries.· Human rights advocates say racial minorities continue to be persecuted.
► treat somebody like dirt informal to treat someone as if they were completely worthless and not care about their feelings: · She treats him like dirt but he still loves her.· I wanted us to be friends again, but I wasn't prepared to be treated like dirt to achieve it.
► pick on informal to choose someone from a group to treat cruelly and unfairly especially by repeatedly criticizing them: · Bullies usually pick on younger children.· Why don't you pick on someone your own size?· Older members of staff often pick on an apprentice and make his life a misery.
► victimize also victimise British if a person or group is victimized , they are treated unfairly, for example because of their beliefs, their race, or because they are weak: · He wasn't happy at the school and said he was victimized because of his colour.· The company says she was not dismissed because of her political activities but she claims she was victimized.
cruel behaviour► cruelty cruel treatment or behaviour: · What kind of person could treat a fellow human being with such cruelty?· Her black eye and bruises were undeniable evidence of his cruelty.cruelty to: · Burnett has campaigned against cruelty to animals for more than 20 years.
► abuse deliberately cruel treatment of someone, especially someone in your family that you are supposed to care for: · Doctors believed that there was no evidence of abuse, despite the woman's claims.child abuse (=cruel treatment of children): · There has been an increase in the number of cases of child abuse.sexual abuse (=when someone forces another person to take part in sexual activities): · a victim of sexual abuse
► bullying cruel treatment of someone who is smaller, younger, or weaker - use this especially about children being cruel to other children: · The government has become involved in the effort to solve the problem of bullying in schools.
► mistreatment/ill-treatment/maltreatment cruel treatment of people or animals, especially those you have some control over: · There can be no good reason for the ill-treatment of factory-farm animals.· Jailers singled out certain prisoners for maltreatment.· There can be no excuse for the mistreatment of people seeking asylum in this country.
► persecution cruel treatment of people because of their religious or political beliefs, or because of the race they belong to: · Many Jews fled to America to escape persecution in Europe.· Katya asked the United States to protect her from persecution in her home country.persecution of: · the relentless persecution of American Communists in the 1950s
► atrocities extremely cruel and shocking actions against people, especially during a war: · Survivors from the concentration camps had witnessed unspeakable atrocities.commit atrocities: · Retreating soldiers told stories of awful atrocities committed by the enemy.
► sadism taking pleasure in cruel acts: · Sadism may stem from a desire to dominate.· Mzukwa grew quiet as he recalled the brutality and sadism of the prison guards.
► inhumanity cruelty that includes violence and a complete lack of sympathy for people's suffering: · Reformists were appalled by the immorality and inhumanity of the slave trade.· The novel focuses on the inhumanity of prisons and labour camps.
to force someone do something by using threats or violence► force · If you don't comply I'm afraid we'll have to force you.force somebody to do something · Thieves had tied him up and forced him to lie on the floor.· All the hostages were forced to hand over their passports.force somebody into (doing) something · She claimed she was forced to take part in the robbery by her husband.
► make to force someone to do something by using violence or threats: · I didn't want to take part in the attack but the soldiers made me.make somebody do something: · They made sales staff open the safe.be made to do something: · The couple were made to hand over all their money and jewellery.
► coerce written to force someone to do something that they do not want to do by threatening that something bad might happen to them if they do not do it: · Ray withdrew his confession, saying that he had been coerced by the police.coerce somebody into doing something: · The mine owners coerced the workers into going back to work, by threatening to close down the mines completely.· Officials coerced peasants into voting for the government candidates. coerce somebody to do something: · The company paid the workers the minimum rate of $4.86 an hour, but coerced some to give back half their pay in cash.
► compel formal to make someone do something by using force or official power: compel somebody to do something: · All the young men in the area were compelled to work in the quarries and coal mines.· The attorney general has the right to compel witnesses to appear in court.
► bully informal to force someone to do something by shouting at them, treating them badly, or using threats: · Don't let the salesman bully you -- it's your choice.bully somebody into doing something: · If you try and bully him into giving you the money he's sure to say no -- you should try and persuade him gently.bully somebody into something: · Ben didn't want to study law, but his father bullied him into it by threatening to cut off his allowance.
► blackmail to force someone to give you money or do what you want, by threatening to tell embarrassing secrets about them: · Gina tried to blackmail him, by threatening to tell his wife about their affair.blackmail somebody into doing something: · The FBI blackmailed her into informing on the other members of the gang.
► use force if someone uses force , they hit, shoot, or use other forms of violence against people in order to make them do something or stop them from doing something: · The regime was quite willing to use force and terror against its enemies. · The law permits every citizen to use reasonable force to defend themselves or their property.use force against: · The police have recently had to defend their policy of using force against rioters.
► strongarm tactics/methods violence or the threat of violence, used to force someone to do something: · The police have been accused of using strongarm tactics when breaking up strikes and public demonstrations.use strongarm tactics/methods to do something: · More and more credit companies are using strongarm methods to collect debts.
► under duress if someone does something under duress , they only agree to do it because they have been threatened, not because they want to do it: · The defendants claimed that their confessions were made under duress.· Judge Mershon ruled that the agreement was signed under duress, and was therefore null and void.
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES► an anti-smoking/anti-bullying etc campaign
1to threaten to hurt someone or frighten them, especially someone smaller or weaker2to put pressure on someone in order to make them do what you wantbully somebody into (doing) something· How effective has the anti-smoking campaign been?
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSNOUN► school· Many have awful stories to tell about being bullied at school, losing jobs, broken relationships.· He bullied the school board which, in theory, employed him, and he chose to ignore the black protest.· I got bullied in secondary school and Eminem helped me stand up for myself.· My youngest child is being bullied at school and I want to send her to St Saviour's.· Anyone who's had a child bullied at school knows the depth of children's capacity for cold, organised cruelty.
► way· Even in these days of lobbying, Members of Parliament will not be bullied in this way.· Isaac bullied his way into second, a gear not made for the speed they had accumulated.· It will be coercion and bullying all the way.· They had pushed and pushed and bullied their way into a freedom that both scared and embarrassed them.· He'd tried to bluff and bully his way out of his terrible mistake, but Volkov wouldn't be intimidated.· They are just nuisances to be bullied out of the way.· The report names companies prepared to bribe and bully their way to lucrative logging concessions.
Don’t let them bully you into working on Saturdays.—bullying noun [uncountable]: an attempt to tackle the problem of bullying in schoolsbully off phrasal verb British English to start a game of hockey—bully-off noun [countable]