belabor Hear it!

belabor Definition

be·la·bor (bē lā′bər, bi-)

transitive verb

  1. to beat severely; hit or whip
  2. to attack with words; scold
  3. to spend too much time and effort on; develop in too great detail to belabor the issue

belabor Synonyms

belabor

v.

dwell on, harp on, overemphasize, run into the ground*; see emphasize, repeat 1, 3.

belabor Usage Examples

Object

  • point: You need not explain common knowledge, the obvious, or belabor a point.
  • issue: We have spent three years with him in 1 and 2 Timothy, so we won't belabor the issue.

Modifying Another Word

  • not: I will not belabor the relevant quatrain interpretations here that are in my book.
  • n't: We have spent three years with him in 1 and 2 Timothy, so we wo n't belabor the issue.