gadfly
noun
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Definition of gadfly
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Synonyms for gadfly
Synonyms
annoyance, annoyer, bother, gnawer, nudnik (also nudnick), nuisance, pain, persecutor, pest, tease, teaser
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Examples of gadfly in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Greenberg seems increasingly isolated, an aging gadfly whose moral rigidity and cynicism have alienated his colleagues. — Rachel Poser, Harper's magazine, "Common Ground," 19 Aug. 2019 Present at the event was medical gadfly Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who has been campaigning against vaccines on the basis of false science since 2005. — Time, "'They’re Chipping Away.' Inside the Grassroots Effort to Fight Mandatory Vaccines," 13 June 2019 So the gadfly part of it was that there really weren’t ... — Eric Johnson, Vox, "The problem with tech people who want to solve problems," 26 June 2019 One of the few journalists to note the existence of the UMG archive was Nikki Finke, the entertainment-industry blogger and gadfly. — New York Times, "The Day the Music Burned," 11 June 2019 As time and circumstance changed, Mr. Sanders gradually evolved from a marginalized gadfly in the House to a reliable Democratic vote in the most insider-y club in Washington, the United States Senate. — Glenn Thrush, New York Times, "Outsider or Insider? How Bernie Sanders Learned to Walk the Line," 6 July 2019 Sanders’s ideology is the product of the winding circumstances of his long career, tracing an unlikely trajectory from radical New England gadfly to U.S. senator. — Matthew Zeitlin, The New Republic, "Bernie’s Red Vermont," 13 June 2019 However, Judge Richard Leon of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia has become something of a gadfly for the firms. — Sy Mukherjee, Fortune, "A Holdout on the CVS-Aetna Deal: Brainstorm Health," 4 June 2019 The website collaborated with top media organizations, and for years, Mr. Assange reveled in his status as an anti-U.S. gadfly and proponent of radical government transparency. — Aruna Viswanatha, WSJ, "WikiLeaks Founder Arrested, Charged With Computer-Hacking Conspiracy," 11 Apr. 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'gadfly.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for gadfly
gadfly
nounFinancial Definition of gadfly
What It Is
A gadfly is a shareholder who publicly criticizes a company's executives at the annual shareholders meeting.
How It Works
The term gets its name from the insect, which bites and annoys animals (usually livestock).
There are many famous gadflies, but one of the most notable was Evelyn Y. Davis, who spent 40 years confronting managers at annual meetings regarding their compensation and performance. Sometimes she wore costumes and bathing suits in the meetings to get attention. In one instance, she badgered the board of Bristol-Myers Squibb to change its corporate charter to require annual elections for all board members. She was able to get Dow Jones and a real estate firm to follow suit as well. In 2003, she made more than 50 proposals at various companies, including (but not limited to) AT&T, DuPont, Ford, and JPMorgan.
Why It Matters
Gadflies are annoying to management, but they are useful to the rest of us. They often draw attention to problems that others may have overlooked, and they can encourage action from other shareholders. Their courage to stand up and dissent is notable if not entertaining at times.
Source: Investing Answers
gadfly
noun
English Language Learners Definition of gadfly
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Kids Definition of gadfly
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Medical Definition of gadfly
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