sandbag

[ sand-bag ]

noun

1. a bag filled with sand, used in fortification, as ballast, etc.
2. such a bag used as a weapon.

verb (used with object)

, sand·bagged, sand·bag·ging.

1. to furnish with sandbags.
2. to hit or stun with a sandbag.
3. Informal.
   1. to set upon violently; attack from or as if from ambush.
   2. to coerce or intimidate, as by threats:

      The election committee was sandbagged into nominating the officers for a second term.

   3. to thwart or cause to fail or be rejected, especially surreptitiously or without warning:

      He sandbagged our proposal with his snide remarks to the boss.

4. 1. Poker. to deceive (one or more opponents) into remaining in the pot by refraining from betting on a strong hand, then raising the bet in a later round.
   2. Informal. to gain an advantage over (one or more competitors) by concealing one's abilities or other strengths early in a game or other competitive activity.
   3. Informal. to gain an advantage by concealing or downplaying the strengths of (something):

      companies that sandbag their earnings estimates and then easily beat them to make everyone happy.

verb (used without object)

, sand·bagged, sand·bag·ging.

1. 1. Poker. to sandbag one or more opponents.
   2. Informal. to sandbag an opponent or competitor:

      guys that sandbag and fall back a little in the first race to get a better starting spot in the second.

sandbag

/ ˈsændˌbæɡ /

noun

1. a sack filled with sand used for protection against gunfire, floodwater, etc, or as ballast in a balloon, ship, etc
2. a bag filled with sand and used as a weapon

verb

1. to protect or strengthen with sandbags
2. to hit with or as if with a sandbag
3. finance to obstruct (an unwelcome takeover bid) by prolonging talks in the hope that an acceptable bidder will come forward

Derived Forms

• ˈsandˌbagger, noun

Other Words From

• sandbagger noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of sandbag¹

First recorded in 1580–90; sand + bag

Example Sentences

You’ll need a moderate weight, a heavy weight, a pull-up bar, a rope, and a sandbag—feel free to improvise, though, using whatever household items you have.

From Outside Online

Buyers, they said, would have a harder time getting state approval for emergency sandbags, for instance, if they were officially warned of the risks of coastal living beforehand.

From ProPublica

Wearing helmets, gas masks and shields, they have been hurling homemade projectiles from behind makeshift barriers made of sandbags and debris.

From Time

Officials with the Department of Land and Natural Resources wouldn’t say whether they would force the North Shore sandbags to be taken out when they expire.

From ProPublica

The department declined the request, fined the couple $2,000 and told them to remove the illegal sandbags.

From ProPublica

One strip, Foolish Grandpa and Sour Henry, shows Grandpa being hit on the head by a sandbag and blown up by dynamite.

From The Daily Beast

A couple more peer through spy holes in the sandbag barricades that line the perimeter.

From The Daily Beast

Factors ranging from the sequester to the ongoing crisis in Europe have the capacity to sandbag the economic expansion.

From The Daily Beast

Did Google just sandbag its rivals in the smartphone market?

From The Daily Beast

From a sandbag protection at one corner of the cemetery there is a view on all sides to the horizon.

From Project Gutenberg

And he fetches a small sandbag and gives it to the stretcher-bearer.

From Project Gutenberg

One of them struck at him, while another attempted to sandbag him from behind.

From Project Gutenberg

This leap saved him from being stretched unconscious by the sandbag.

From Project Gutenberg

The man slid his rifle-barrel over a sandbag, raised his head and took hasty aim, fired, and ducked quickly down again.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• equilibrium