How To Use Heavy-handed In A Sentence

  • The heavy-handed allusiveness may just be an aesthetic mistake, a secondary flaw we have to countenance while otherwise acknowledging the narrative power of the novel as a whole. Translated Texts
  • The thing that really grates, though, is the po-faced sermonising on global warming and heavy-handed attempts to make Serious Points about Serious Issues.
  • The irony gets a little heavy-handed - one of the baldies discovers love while picking up an anorexic chick in the hospital cafeteria - but the sentiment is genuine.
  • Anthony Hopkins goes from sullen silence to wordy sermonising as an unhinged anthropologist in this heavy-handed drama.
  • She was not an unordinary child, she came from a large family with lots of kids who were also never spanked, they were not perfect children, but they were disciplined and well-liked, and having “lived” in their house, I could see no other heavy-handed parental shenanigans … and the question I asked myself was “So then … what is wrong with ME that I need to be hit in order to learn?” Sticks And Stones | Her Bad Mother
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  • It involved the deployment of force in numbers and heavy-handed intervention. Times, Sunday Times
  • Heavy-handed and unsubtle, it tends to detract annoyingly from, rather than enhance, changes in mood.
  • This intrusion shows how heavy-handed the movie's efforts to be relevant and political are.
  • Apparently they're so concerned that they might be missing some tracking data that they'll tip their hand by disrupting all commerce with heavy-handed checkpointing. Politics in Analog
  • Until then, uprisings against the new Norman régime had been confined to local spats prompted mainly by the heavy-handed actions of overzealous castellans.
  • The work is more of a textural tone poem - and a rather heavy-handed one at that - spending most of its time in a noisy netherworld of guitars, electronics, and occasional contrabass saxophone.
  • Its heavy-handed sales tactics prompted the pharmaceutical industry's regulatory watchdog to make a ruling of unethical behaviour against it. Times, Sunday Times
  • The security forces are notorious for using heavy-handed tactics to keep the peace. Times, Sunday Times
  • I read that as a clear statement that she still holds to her transphobic views – and the subtext is as obnoxious as it is heavy-handed and unoriginal. Tonight we’re going to party like it’s 1985
  • Critics who bash such films as Happy Times as being heavy-handed misinterpret the key differences between Eastern and Western cinema.
  • Less forgivable is the increasingly heavy-handed use of parallel patients: the woman uncomfortable in her own skin, the man whose left and right brains are at war. Season finale frenzy: 'House'
  • Surely the police response was a bit heavy-handed - what order were they disrupting anyhow?
  • The nice fluid football has been replaced by a more physical, heavy-handed approach. The Sun
  • The heavy-handed treatment of his opponent is likely to undermine public support for a deeply unpopular regime. Times, Sunday Times
  • It's all a little heavy-handed. Times, Sunday Times
  • Not to be too heavy-handed, but the lorries are the governing powers of the West and the Soviet Union and the children are the rest of us. The Enigmatic Face of Terror
  • Eventually, though, her Catholic aspirations to Protestant gentility and heavy-handed elocution lessons failed to soothe her brute of a husband.
  • The heavy-handed tactics came after they had already wrestled the man to the ground. The Sun
  • It's very heavy-handed of the OMB to come in and regulate peer review, " Waxman charges.
  • The work is more of a textural tone poem - and a rather heavy-handed one at that - spending most of its time in a noisy netherworld of guitars, electronics, and occasional contrabass saxophone.
  • This easily could have been an excruciating polemic of real world issues, but any heavy-handedness is precluded by the author's expert storytelling and world building prowess. REVIEW: Under the Dome by Stephen King
  • The paradox is that his heavy-handed tactics risk provoking one. Times, Sunday Times
  • Hence the heavy-handed police tactics of dawn raids, ripped up floorboards and the like. Times, Sunday Times
  • And the military, despite its intermittently heavy-handed responses, is heedful of public sentiment to a degree unprecedented under the old regime.
  • But at home his popularity slumped amid anger over his heavy-handed regime and incompetence. The Sun
  • David Haye, "chinny" and all is probably best suited to put a "Jack Dempsey" on the heavy-handed PhD's. Doghouse Boxing News
  • Older officers are wary of such heavy-handed tactics. Times, Sunday Times
  • Its humour and its pathos are both heavy-handed, but its exuberance carries it along. Times, Sunday Times
  • My friend Jeff Z. Klein at the New York Times put together a classic post, showing clips of fan reactions to the win all over the country - and the chants of "U.S.A." to my ear, at least here in Germany, sounded happy and joyous, of course, but also with a kind of growling heavy-handedness. Steve Kettmann: Donovan's Amazing Feat: Making U.S. One With the Rest of the World
  • Meanwhile Pam's betrothed, Joe, is also having his own doubts about the day, with matters further complicated by the bridesmaid's heavy-handed attempts to convince Pam that no woman could be blamed for leaving her father.
  • Past IMF efforts in other regions, including Latin America and Asia, were often seen as heavy-handed and tone-deaf to the privations forced on ordinary citizens.
  • (Being a new anonymous:) I have nothing at all to say about Kate DiCamillo as a person, but agree that her work is often heavy-handed, condescending, uninteresting, and just plain callow. Here they are,
  • Their pursuit and imprisonment by heavy-handed police. The Sun
  • No heavy-handed security asking the crowd to push back, make way - everything was handled with awesome expertise and finesse.
  • This was particularly the case in Brixton where the riots are thought to have been sparked off by a certain degree of insensitive and heavy-handed policing.
  • We are all against the present US administration's heavy-handed admonitions to reform.
  • It's not, and Earl's mistake is the essence of "Dinosaurs," a sometimes heavy-handed but mostly warmblooded sitcom beginning April 26 on ABC. A Megalosaurus Hit?
  • ‘Laurie can be effective, but also heavy-handed and a browbeater,’ said one politically active Hollywood insider, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
  • Newman's pained performance is a slightly heavy-handed but compelling version of the Marlon method.
  • Another area of concern has been the use of heavy-handed tactics when payments are missed. Times, Sunday Times
  • He was trying to be friendly in a slightly heavy-handed fashion, and possibly had a couple of marbles missing from his collection, but was more like a slightly batty grandfather, than a menace.
  • But this heavy-handed treatment of two harmless bird lovers was way over the top. The Sun
  • Others are the victims of tactless, heavy-handed criticism from superiors.
  • The heavy-handed tactics resulted in sporadic clashes between protesters and police and numerous arrests.
  • While I preferred the villain in the second movie, I found the story flabbier (egads, the Aunt May speech!), heavy-handed (Spiderman's Christ-like pose as he bodysurfs his way down the crowd of commuters), and occasionally mystifying (I'll just drop this fusion experiment gone awry into New York Harbor and that should just about do it ...). I Was Grossly Misinformed About Spider-Man 3...
  • Many are angry with the army for using heavy-handed tactics. Times, Sunday Times
  • Although Emily's contemplations can feel overwritten and her symbolism heavy-handed, her engagingly angsty personality draws us in.
  • Studio officials mounted a full, heavy-handed investigation. Times, Sunday Times
  • Its heavy-handed sales tactics prompted the pharmaceutical industry's regulatory watchdog to make a ruling of unethical behaviour against it. Times, Sunday Times
  • Even as authors griped about heavy-handed editing, readers complained that the articles were too long and too difficult - not edited enough.
  • It's a good thing the scene was deleted, as it's heavy-handed and the dialogue is awkward.
  • But at home his popularity slumped amid anger over his heavy-handed regime and incompetence. The Sun
  • While one should deplore the heavy-handed censorship that made the Index of Forbidden Books so opprobrious, no one can wonder why the censors found Hume a prime candidate for that infamous canon.
  • Pub landlord Paul Morris criticised police for being heavy-handed and has disputed that any drugs were found.
  • But the main argument was that they were too heavy-handed and did not give the public clear instructions during demonstrations. Times, Sunday Times
  • The film's efforts to establish Cage as a countercultural hero are a little heavy-handed, but you can forgive that for the gusto invested in every action sequence.
  • They warned, however, that a heavy-handed police response could trigger mass protests.
  • In fact Irvine says Morrison's version largely sticks to its classical narrative and nomenclature, but she admits she was initially wary of being drawn into heavy-handed polemic.
  • Some protesters sat in the street and resisted peacefully, but as crowds swelled there were complaints that the police were getting heavy-handed and punches were thrown. Times, Sunday Times
  • But these heavy-handed teases do very little for the overcooked melodrama. Times, Sunday Times
  • Ravel's exclusive publishing arrangement notwithstanding, it's not uncommon for musical works to be published over time by different publishers and subsequently freighted with the conflicting, sometimes overzealous or heavy-handed input of seriatim editors reflecting shifting interpretative mores. Four Lost Measures Found
  • Fergusson Intermediate pupils say the school has threatened to dish out detentions if they are caught hugging each other, a move many feel is heavy-handed.
  • Concerned patriots turned their attention to exposing the poverty and backwardness of the majority—those for whom the word Italia, if it meant anything at all, meant taxes on basic foodstuffs, conscription, and heavy-handed policing. Delizia!
  • Too often they came across as gimmicks, awkward and heavy-handed.
  • Sinnette was dominating the early stages when he was "clocked" by the heavy-handed Mackie and suffered a second round technical knockout loss. TrinidadExpress Today's News
  • My apologies to the author for what may well be rather heavy-handed paraphrasing of his often quite poetic prose.
  • It is no surprise that an incident involving heavy-handed policing created the spark to start a new incident.
  • The protesters also want an end to the heavy-handed police tactics that led to the killing of the four demonstrators last week.
  • Yet, in the end, it becomes haunted by the unwelcome presence of heavy-handedness, making it seem more like a busy domestic melodrama (with a ghost) than a truly unnerving chiller.
  • For example, the musical score is so sweet and heavy-handed at times that it can hardly be lacking in irony, calling to mind the sugary scores in many Italian and Hollywood melodramas and romances.
  • Three decades later, French novelist Pierre Boulle published "Planet of the Apes," whose heavy-handed satire (the apes drive cars and drink in nightclubs) inspired an American franchise of action movies. "Lucy," a half-ape/half-human thriller by Laurence Gonzales
  • But it soon abandons easy-listening hipness and becomes a heavy-handed biopic about a tormented genius.
  • Indirectly, the heavy-handed emphasis on masculinity and "boi" - ness even within allegedly feminist communities proves this trend. WHEN JOHNNY COMES MARCHING HOME AGAIN
  • The ramekin dish was topped with slices of banana and strawberry, but underneath the fruit someone had been a little heavy-handed with the blowtorch, and what should have been crispy toffee was actually burnt sugar.
  • But these heavy-handed teases do very little for the overcooked melodrama. Times, Sunday Times
  • Sporadic heavy-handedness aside, the film works nicely both as a character drama and a cannily miniaturized epic, a modestly scaled but undeniably affecting fable with lingering moral heft.
  • Put some folks in a tent-revival, old-timey setting for a good hour of heavy-handed, fahr-n-brimstone preachifying in place of the violent video games. Review of Carnagey, Anderson, and Bushman
  • Three years of protests is a long time in a city where the police have developed a reputation for using heavy-handed tactics against demonstrators.
  • Along the way, life lessons are learned and current social issues are explored, but it rarely feels heavy-handed.
  • Outraged republicans accused the police of heavy-handed tactics.
  • Moreover, one important consequence of voter ignorance is that voters are unlikely to make fine-grained distinctions between “libertarian” paternalistic policies and more heavy-handed ones. The Volokh Conspiracy » The Double Standard of Libertarian Paternalism
  • That means an end to heavy-handed, overspending command and control. Times, Sunday Times
  • The riots were seen specifically as anti-police demonstrations provoked by heavy-handed police harassment.
  • But it is firmly against heavy-handed regulation, such as a sharp increase in mandatory fuel efficiency for cars.
  • It will not work, this heavy-handed approach to social engineering. The Sun
  • Although Emily's contemplations can feel overwritten and her symbolism heavy-handed, her engagingly angsty personality draws us in.
  • incensed at the government's heavy-handed economic policies
  • But I do think the way it's being handled is awfully heavy-handed, not so much an insult to the intelligence as it is unnecessarily obvious, with Dexter's voice-overs underscoring and belaboring what is already so clear. Ask Matt: Walking Dead, Homeland, Terra Nova, Dexter and More!
  • This one has bits of glorious writing, but it's a bit heavy-handed and clunky over all.
  • In the Nineties heyday of raves police were slammed for their heavy-handed approach. The Sun
  • Discussing the issue at their meeting on Monday night, community council members agreed that a bye-law would be too heavy-handed a measure to use to discourage the group of drinkers who spend time in Broad Street.
  • Don't be too heavy-handed with the salt.
  • He criticised police for being heavy-handed and said that he planned to make an official complaint. Times, Sunday Times
  • It is narrative driven, without being heavy-handed or overly literal.
  • Around fifteen people were arrested after heavy-handed tactics were employed by police.
  • Police used heavy-handed tactics to disperse the protesters.
  • Not, he notes, ‘that there isn't plenty of truckling to superiors, parasitism, heavy-handed flattery, back-scratching and bottom-kissing, all calculated to bring special advantages to its purveyors.’
  • Your neighbour will be annoyed by this heavy-handed approach, but the situation will be completely clear. Times, Sunday Times
  • The aforementioned and heavy-handed passage aside, Hecht's film should be commended for its treatment of potentially incendiary elements.
  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology doctoral physicist Charles Zhang, 33, for example, is trying to steer Beijing away from the heavy-handed state planning used by South Korea and Japan.
  • Massachusetts Institute of Technology doctoral physicist Charles Zhang, 33, for example, is trying to steer Beijing away from the heavy-handed state planning used by South KoreaJapan.
  • It is the result of a heavy-handed so-called equalities agenda that discriminates against Christians and seeks to eliminate Christian expression from the public square. Doctor Bulldog & Ronin
  • A lot of Americans are not wildly pronuclear and thought the U.S. may have overreacted in past years in its very heavy-handed treatment of New Zealand. The Presidents Press Conference
  • The dramaturgy in writer-director Rashaad Ernesto Green's film can get heavy-handed. Marshall Fine: HuffPost Review: Gun Hill Road
  • His team were more than a little heavy-handed. The Sun
  • Yet coalition ministers were loath to resort to heavy-handed interference. Times, Sunday Times
  • It was basically a slasher flick as heavy-handed allegory for my family.
  • Killing the arsonist was both heavy-handed and bound to attract further police attention.
  • However, Kurtz is not heavy-handed, laying out the pros and cons of talk culled from years of exhaustive reporting.
  • She is the opposite of heavy-handed, the literary equivalent of a supertaster, repeatedly picking out the unobvious note. The Times Literary Supplement
  • A good fillet of sea bream was rather overwhelmed by a quilt of very salty black olive paste and the grilled eel in a herb crust was also a little heavy-handed.
  • I used to think that this represented a callous and heavy-handed approach the problem. Christianity Today
  • Some say the police did it to gain sympathy for the coming heavy-handed police tactics at the summit.
  • The transition from the heavy-handed practices of woodcraft to the light-handed techniques of Leave No Trace can be read as a logical response to the tremendous growth in wilderness recreation during the twentieth century.
  • Heavy-handed searches, of the type witnessed by The Observer, involve large numbers of troops, armoured vehicles and attack helicopters.
  • Her grooming salon is called "Chez Emile Firecracker" and, after the explosive blow drying, her beautician was a little heavy-handed with the self-tanning cream? French Word-A-Day:
  • The heavy-handed creationist propaganda film Expelled expelled a pro-evolutionist from a showing of the film. Easter Lemming Liberal News
  • It is 1980s country house hotel cooking: complicated, rich, protein-intensive, heavy-handedly peppered with foods that shriek out Scottishness.
  • The issue is the heavy-handed approach of certain individuals. Times, Sunday Times
  • The ramekin dish was topped with slices of banana and strawberry, but underneath the fruit someone had been a little heavy-handed with the blowtorch, and what should have been crispy toffee was actually burnt sugar.

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