as in blow
a hard strike with a part of the body or an instrument
all it took was one hard stroke to knock the ball out of the tree
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in to caress
to touch or handle in a tender or loving manner
the young mother gently stroked the sleeping child's brow and then leaned over and kissed him
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in to massage
to praise too much
a politician with a special gift for stroking fat-cat donors
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of stroke
Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 7 Feb. 2026
These pale pink nails are accented with jade motifs, bright red strokes, and plum blossoms to signal hope and renewal.
—Odeya Pinkus, InStyle, 7 Feb. 2026
Literary Hub, 17 Dec. 2025
Research shows the risk of stroke also rises this time of year, and strokes present differently than heart attacks.
—Allison Aubrey, NPR, 17 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for stroke
Noun
Much of this played out in private, but the public knew the broad strokes thanks to legal filings and press coverage.
—Andy Greene, Rolling Stone, 7 Feb. 2026
These pale pink nails are accented with jade motifs, bright red strokes, and plum blossoms to signal hope and renewal.
—Odeya Pinkus, InStyle, 7 Feb. 2026
Verb
Allen has created a hall of mirrors, then, in which we’re supposed to stroke our chins and perhaps wink-wink at Baum’s meta commentary about the dangers of confusing the artist with the man … But so what?
—Literary Hub, 17 Dec. 2025
Research shows the risk of stroke also rises this time of year, and strokes present differently than heart attacks.
—Allison Aubrey, NPR, 17 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for stroke
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stroke
Noun
-
Case considered a blow to Hong Kong media Lai founded Apple Daily in 1995, two years before Hong Kong returned to Chinese rule after 156 years as a British colony.—
Kanis Leung,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Feb. 2026
-
Liverpool were their own worst enemy as their hopes of Champions League qualification suffered another blow.—
James Pearce,
New York Times,
9 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Williams knows how to humanize this bare-bones vocabulary, minutely adjusting the voicing of a chord or caressing the last of a set of recurring motifs with a regretful ritardando.—
Alex Ross,
New Yorker,
26 Jan. 2026
-
The actor followed her around at several events related to the wedding, eventually caressing the back of her arm and pressing his knee against hers under the table.—
Ryan Coleman,
Entertainment Weekly,
26 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Make your way to your belly button and massage the center of your stomach for a couple of minutes.—
Julia Ries Wexler,
SELF,
6 Feb. 2026
-
The other two guys, who are wearing undies when not getting massaged, are giving the lightest and most cursory of touches to either the shoulders or the calves.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
4 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
The company's rival Anthropic unveiled its first Super Bowl campaign, taking a not-so-subtle swipe at OpenAI's recent decision to begin testing ads within ChatGPT.—
Ashley Capoot,
CNBC,
6 Feb. 2026
-
And, the higher the credit card rate climbs, the more every swipe costs — not just today, but far into the future.—
Angelica Leicht,
CBS News,
6 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Inside the facility, Angela empties her pockets, a guard scans her with a metal-detection wand, pats her down and asks her to spread her legs.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
31 Jan. 2026
-
After a short conversation, the two patted each other on the head a couple of times and separated, each heading toward his respective locker room.—
Chris Biderman,
Sacbee.com,
31 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The crust puffs up nicely and isn’t as thin and cardboard-y as others, while the white cheese blend and wisp of rosemary remind me of a New York white pie slice.—
Alex Beggs,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
7 Feb. 2026
-
Plus, it’s packed with skin care to brighten and de-puff your skin with everyday use.—
Genevieve Cepeda,
InStyle,
6 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Director Ric Roman Waugh has a nice, gritty visual style and the fists and bullets land hard here, less stylish balletic and more thump thump.—
Mark Kennedy,
Boston Herald,
29 Jan. 2026
-
In Guyana’s capital city of Georgetown, neighbors can still hear the thumps.—
Tyler Jett,
Des Moines Register,
21 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The surprise meeting was on the stage of the Zlata Hokejka (Golden Stick) award show in the Czech Republic, where Hašek congratulated Dostál for being named one of the country’s best hockey players.—
Jesse Granger,
New York Times,
9 Feb. 2026
-
Rehmet said Patrick congratulated him.—
Jack Fink,
CBS News,
8 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Stroke.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stroke. Accessed 11 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
