1
: reaching as high as one's neck
She stood in neck-deep water.
2
: standing in something that reaches to one's neck
—usually + in
She was neck-deep in water.
—often used figurativelyWe were neck-deep in work.
: in something that reaches to one's neck
She stood neck-deep in the water.
Examples of neck-deep in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
William Pesek, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2025
Directed by Neil Burger, espionage thriller Inheritance (out Jan. 24) stars Dynevor as Maya, who tries to get reacquainted with her estranged father (Rhys Ifans) and ends up neck-deep in an international conspiracy.
—Alamin Yohannes, EW.com, 15 Jan. 2025
The growing Minority Report vibes and the evidence that Feds are neck-deep in hip-hop media and culture, connecting the wrong dots, arouse a numbing resignation about future overreach.
—Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 1 Nov. 2024
Once the roads opened and local testers shoveled their way out of neck-deep driveways, our crew assembled in the Biggest Little City in the World: Reno, Nevada, our basecamp for this year’s board test.
—Drew Zieff, Outside Online, 27 Sep. 2024
The Democratic Party is suddenly neck-deep in democracy, as ambitious younger leaders splash wildly after the ultimate prize in politics.
—David Von Drehle, Washington Post, 21 July 2024
And determined volunteers rescue a cow stuck neck-deep in mud.
—Terry Baddoo, USA TODAY, 2 May 2024
The soil beneath her hooves began to collapse as a sinkhole formed, trapping the 20-year-old horse neck-deep in mud, the Los Angeles Fire Department said in a Feb. 21 news release.
—Daniella Segura, Sacramento Bee, 22 Feb. 2024
Firefighters were able to successfully pull a horse out from neck-deep soil after a sinkhole suddenly swallowed the animal Wednesday afternoon.
—Grace Toohey, Los Angeles Times, 21 Feb. 2024
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Adjective
One great irony is that Rubin, Summers and Geithner were neck-deep in efforts to end the 1997 Asian crisis, one largely caused by crony capitalism run amok.
—William Pesek, Forbes, 21 Feb. 2025
Directed by Neil Burger, espionage thriller Inheritance (out Jan. 24) stars Dynevor as Maya, who tries to get reacquainted with her estranged father (Rhys Ifans) and ends up neck-deep in an international conspiracy.
—Alamin Yohannes, EW.com, 15 Jan. 2025
The growing Minority Report vibes and the evidence that Feds are neck-deep in hip-hop media and culture, connecting the wrong dots, arouse a numbing resignation about future overreach.
—Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 1 Nov. 2024
Once the roads opened and local testers shoveled their way out of neck-deep driveways, our crew assembled in the Biggest Little City in the World: Reno, Nevada, our basecamp for this year’s board test.
—Drew Zieff, Outside Online, 27 Sep. 2024
The Democratic Party is suddenly neck-deep in democracy, as ambitious younger leaders splash wildly after the ultimate prize in politics.
—David Von Drehle, Washington Post, 21 July 2024
And determined volunteers rescue a cow stuck neck-deep in mud.
—Terry Baddoo, USA TODAY, 2 May 2024
The soil beneath her hooves began to collapse as a sinkhole formed, trapping the 20-year-old horse neck-deep in mud, the Los Angeles Fire Department said in a Feb. 21 news release.
—Daniella Segura, Sacramento Bee, 22 Feb. 2024
Firefighters were able to successfully pull a horse out from neck-deep soil after a sinkhole suddenly swallowed the animal Wednesday afternoon.
—Grace Toohey, Los Angeles Times, 21 Feb. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Neck-deep.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/neck-deep. Accessed 12 Jul. 2025.
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