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Definition of "coax" []

  • To persuade or try to persuade by pleading or flattery; cajole. (verb-transitive)
  • To obtain by persistent persuasion: coaxed the secret out of the child. (verb-transitive)
  • Obsolete To caress; fondle. (verb-transitive)
  • To move to or adjust toward a desired end: "A far more promising approach to treating advanced melanoma is to coax the immune system to recognize melanoma cells as deadly” ( Natalie Angier). (verb-transitive)
  • To use persuasion or inducement. (verb-intransitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Use "coax" in a sentence
  • "Keating is even the kind of educator who can coax from a shy, stuttering student (Ethan Hawke) Walt Whitman's famed "barbaric yawp.""
  • "That braided jacket on the coax is the second most important part of relaying good TV signal."
  • "WiFi Rail relies on leaky coax, which is wiring that runs in the tunnel already, and they've overlaid Wi-Fi signals on in a way that simulates a very long antenna."