as in hobby
an activity outside of one's regular occupation that is engaged in primarily for pleasure
oil painting became the hobbyhorse of her long years of retirement
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Examples Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of hobbyhorse
Never mind the crime issue or that favorite Trumpian hobbyhorse, immigration and the border.
—
Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 14 Aug. 2024
Riding clubs and hobbyhorse camps foster those close connections.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 13 June 2024
In part that’s because, to climb back on an old hobbyhorse of mine, platforms are still too stingy with the data that might help researchers understand them better.
—Casey Newton, The Verge, 24 May 2023
Nor does the Trooper seem to hobbyhorse longitudinally or wobble laterally while running straight on some surfaces, as the S-10 Blazer sometimes does.
—Pete Lyons, Car and Driver, 26 Mar. 2023
The short-wheelbase Suzuki hobbyhorses over these rhythmic disturbances and sets your guts a-bouncing.
—Kevin Smith, Car and Driver, 4 Mar. 2023
This is a hobbyhorse of Washington progressives, both because federal jurisdiction over gun crimes hinges on their movement in interstate commerce, and because bloviating about guns is more palatable than addressing who exactly is using guns illegally, a third rail in Democratic Party politics.
—Andrew C. McCarthy, National Review, 5 Feb. 2022
Most of the criticism is baseless tripe hatched to advance Trump or some other Fox News hobbyhorse, though there have been plenty of legitimate reasons to bash MSNBC and CNN over the years.
—Erik Wemple, Washington Post, 19 July 2022
Speculation about why this might be so tends to reflect the hobbyhorse of the speculator.
—Zoë Heller, The New Yorker, 4 Apr. 2022
Mark Z. Barabak, Los Angeles Times, 14 Aug. 2024
Riding clubs and hobbyhorse camps foster those close connections.
—Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 13 June 2024
In part that’s because, to climb back on an old hobbyhorse of mine, platforms are still too stingy with the data that might help researchers understand them better.
—Casey Newton, The Verge, 24 May 2023
Nor does the Trooper seem to hobbyhorse longitudinally or wobble laterally while running straight on some surfaces, as the S-10 Blazer sometimes does.
—Pete Lyons, Car and Driver, 26 Mar. 2023
The short-wheelbase Suzuki hobbyhorses over these rhythmic disturbances and sets your guts a-bouncing.
—Kevin Smith, Car and Driver, 4 Mar. 2023
This is a hobbyhorse of Washington progressives, both because federal jurisdiction over gun crimes hinges on their movement in interstate commerce, and because bloviating about guns is more palatable than addressing who exactly is using guns illegally, a third rail in Democratic Party politics.
—Andrew C. McCarthy, National Review, 5 Feb. 2022
Most of the criticism is baseless tripe hatched to advance Trump or some other Fox News hobbyhorse, though there have been plenty of legitimate reasons to bash MSNBC and CNN over the years.
—Erik Wemple, Washington Post, 19 July 2022
Speculation about why this might be so tends to reflect the hobbyhorse of the speculator.
—Zoë Heller, The New Yorker, 4 Apr. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hobbyhorse
Noun
-
Instead, invest your energy in things that give you a sense of agency: listening closely to a loved one, throwing yourself into a hobby, reading a novel.Jenny Taitz, Los Angeles Times, 31 Oct. 2024
-
This juvenile sadist makes a hobby out of humiliation, intimidation, inflicting pain both physical and emotional.Judy Berman, TIME, 30 Oct. 2024
Noun
-
Soto is up to the taking a meeting phase of one of baseball’s biggest free agent sagas that is perhaps is seeing more details than the pursuit of Shohei Ohtani, who went from allegedly signing with the Toronto Blue Jays to actually joining the Dodgers on a massively deferred deal.Larry Fleisher, Forbes, 21 Nov. 2024
-
Fremont County deputies and troopers with the Iowa State Patrol chased the Kia in a pursuit that crossed over into Missouri, the sheriff's office said.Doha Madani, NBC News, 21 Nov. 2024
Noun
-
Winners are announced each Friday online and in the print edition of the Mercury News and East Bay Times sports sections.Joseph Dycus, The Mercury News, 14 Nov. 2024
-
Rohan Nadkarni Rohan Nadkarni is a sports reporter for NBC News.Rohan Nadkarni, NBC News, 14 Nov. 2024
Noun
-
What began as an avocation turned into a serious occupation, as Fox Solomon turned to documenting the remnants of segregation visible in Chattanooga and across the South.Christina Cacouris, The New Yorker, 24 Sep. 2024
-
Dramatically groaning and moaning about the heat in the summer is my avocation.Sherry Kuehl, Kansas City Star, 10 July 2024
Noun
-
The woman, Felicity Irvine, shared a candid video of her amusement after learning what had really caught her partner's eye to TikTok on October 16.Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2024
-
Along the way, he’s been writing: plays, screenplays, silly songs for his private amusement, and humor pieces for McSweeney’s and The New Yorker.Michael Schulman, The New Yorker, 27 Oct. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near hobbyhorse
Cite this Entry
“Hobbyhorse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hobbyhorse. Accessed 28 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share