jostled; jostling
ˈjā-s(ə-)liŋ 
1
a
: to come in contact or into collision
a jostling crowd
b
: to make one's way by pushing and shoving
people jostling toward the exit
c
: to exist in close proximity
2
: to vie in gaining an objective : contend
tribes began to jostle with one another for room—
Daniel Defoe
Daniel Defoe1
2
: to vie with in attaining an objective
an enormous industry in which a great many companies and interests jostle each other fiercely—Washington Post
Washington Post1
: the experience of being pushed or jostled (see jostle entry 1)
might glide through … life among them without a jostle—Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson2
: the state of being crowded or pushed together : the state of being jostled
the state fair is deliberately about the crowds and jostle, the noise and overload of sight and event—David Foster Wallace
David Foster Wallace
Synonyms
Examples of jostle in a Sentence
Verb
Everyone in the crowd was jostling each other trying to get a better view.
everyone glared at the man who jostled to the front of the line
Recent Examples on the WebJack Tamisiea, Scientific American, 30 Nov. 2023
To keep the cards from jostling around too much, tie a heavy bead or hex nut at the bottom of each strand.
—Karen Hugg, Washington Post, 22 Nov. 2023
This is a great option if your phone gets jostled around a lot.
—Kurt Knutsson, Fox News, 23 Oct. 2023
But smell is increasingly becoming part of the brand strategy for companies in unexpected industries, as brands jostle for precious slivers of market share and especially as workers and clients begin to trickle back into office spaces.
—T.m. Brown, New York Times, 20 Oct. 2023
Powell’s comments jostled markets as investors were weighing bond yields’ ascent toward 5%, the continuing conflict between Israel and Hamas, and the influx of corporate earnings results from the third quarter.
—Eric Wallerstein, WSJ, 19 Oct. 2023
Words are already leaky containers, spilling out context whenever they’re jostled.
—Jayson Greene, Pitchfork, 17 Oct. 2023
Security members on both sides jostled with one another, and Danis was disqualified.
—Ryan Morik, Fox News, 14 Oct. 2023
Sacha, if he was dressed up as Brüno — and this did not happen with Borat — people would just jostle and slap him.
—Mikey O'Connell, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Oct. 2023
José Sánchez Córdova, Dallas News, 11 July 2023
But to invoke hand-to-hand combat, and infliction of actual physical violence, as a jostle for computer-app supremacy does ring new bells.
—Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 23 June 2023
The bed jostles, a noiseless vibration, as heart monitors unstick themselves from her chest and retreat into the EKG monitor.
—Annalee Newitz, Rolling Stone, 28 June 2023
In Los Angeles or San Francisco, agitation of this sort was the usual jostle.
—Mark Arax, New York Times, 1 June 2023
The officer places his hand on the holster and hunches over while the two jostle outside the gas station.
—Olivia Diaz, Washington Post, 25 May 2023
As their twin narratives continue, Auburn jostles audience expectations, steering the story away from potentially melodramatic plot points, eschewing sentimentality — even offering a flight of fancy or two.
—Frank Rizzo, Variety, 26 Apr. 2023
With the loss, Dallas (36-37) fell 1.5 games behind sixth-place Golden State (38-36) in the jostle to finish among the top six automatic postseason qualifiers and avoid the 7th-through-10-place play-in tournament.
—Brad Townsend, Dallas News, 22 Mar. 2023
The case of the Marshall Islands is emblematic of the increasingly fervent geopolitical competition in the Pacific as the United States and China jostle for influence.
—Pete McKenzie, Washington Post, 27 Jan. 2023
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Verb
Fellow Chinstrap Penguins can also destroy or dislodge one another’s eggs as the new parents jostle for space on the overcrowded nesting ground.
—Jack Tamisiea, Scientific American, 30 Nov. 2023
To keep the cards from jostling around too much, tie a heavy bead or hex nut at the bottom of each strand.
—Karen Hugg, Washington Post, 22 Nov. 2023
This is a great option if your phone gets jostled around a lot.
—Kurt Knutsson, Fox News, 23 Oct. 2023
But smell is increasingly becoming part of the brand strategy for companies in unexpected industries, as brands jostle for precious slivers of market share and especially as workers and clients begin to trickle back into office spaces.
—T.m. Brown, New York Times, 20 Oct. 2023
Powell’s comments jostled markets as investors were weighing bond yields’ ascent toward 5%, the continuing conflict between Israel and Hamas, and the influx of corporate earnings results from the third quarter.
—Eric Wallerstein, WSJ, 19 Oct. 2023
Words are already leaky containers, spilling out context whenever they’re jostled.
—Jayson Greene, Pitchfork, 17 Oct. 2023
Security members on both sides jostled with one another, and Danis was disqualified.
—Ryan Morik, Fox News, 14 Oct. 2023
Sacha, if he was dressed up as Brüno — and this did not happen with Borat — people would just jostle and slap him.
—Mikey O'Connell, The Hollywood Reporter, 13 Oct. 2023
Noun
The Barbie events will come as Gerwig’s film jostles with Christopher Nolan’s drama Oppenheimer for box office supremacy.
—José Sánchez Córdova, Dallas News, 11 July 2023
But to invoke hand-to-hand combat, and infliction of actual physical violence, as a jostle for computer-app supremacy does ring new bells.
—Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 23 June 2023
The bed jostles, a noiseless vibration, as heart monitors unstick themselves from her chest and retreat into the EKG monitor.
—Annalee Newitz, Rolling Stone, 28 June 2023
In Los Angeles or San Francisco, agitation of this sort was the usual jostle.
—Mark Arax, New York Times, 1 June 2023
The officer places his hand on the holster and hunches over while the two jostle outside the gas station.
—Olivia Diaz, Washington Post, 25 May 2023
As their twin narratives continue, Auburn jostles audience expectations, steering the story away from potentially melodramatic plot points, eschewing sentimentality — even offering a flight of fancy or two.
—Frank Rizzo, Variety, 26 Apr. 2023
With the loss, Dallas (36-37) fell 1.5 games behind sixth-place Golden State (38-36) in the jostle to finish among the top six automatic postseason qualifiers and avoid the 7th-through-10-place play-in tournament.
—Brad Townsend, Dallas News, 22 Mar. 2023
The case of the Marshall Islands is emblematic of the increasingly fervent geopolitical competition in the Pacific as the United States and China jostle for influence.
—Pete McKenzie, Washington Post, 27 Jan. 2023
See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'jostle.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
First Known Use
Verb
1546, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a
Noun
1611, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Dictionary Entries Near jostle
Cite this Entry
“Jostle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/jostle. Accessed 9 Dec. 2023.
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More from Merriam-Webster on jostle
Nglish: Translation of jostle for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of jostle for Arabic Speakers
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