Cajole

//kəˈd͡ʒoʊl// noun, verb

noun, verb ·Moderate ·High school level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    The act of cajoling
Verb
  1. 1
    To persuade someone to do something which they are reluctant to do, especially by flattery or promises; to coax. ambitransitive

    "Then he Cajol'd vvith his Brother, and perſvvaded him vvhat Service he had done him, […]"

  2. 2
    influence or urge by gentle urging, caressing, or flattering wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
coaxinveiglesweet-talkwheedlewheedleadulate

Example

More examples

"Jimmy tried to cajole his parents into letting him drive across the country with his friends."

Etymology

Borrowed from French cajoler, probably a blend of Middle French cageoler (“chatter like a jay”) (from gajole, dialectal diminutive of geai (“jaybird”)) + Old French gaioler (“entice into a cage”), which is from Medieval Latin gabiola, from Late Latin caveola (whence English caveola), diminutive of Latin cavea (“cage, coop, enclosure, stall”). More at cage, cave, cavum, cavus, and jail.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.