as in to beg
to persuade someone to give you (something) for free
He spent his time trying to cadge drinks from the customers. She cadged money from her sister.
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Recent Examples of cadge
Schwarzenegger made a pilgrimage to Washington to cadge more money from the government, but came home empty-handed.
—
Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 10 June 2025
Ansa works in a Helsinki supermarket, collecting expired food and cadging the odd casserole for her dinner.
—Ann Hornaday, Washington Post, 4 Dec. 2023
One weekend, a colleague cadged a Chrysler minivan.
—Brett Berk, Car and Driver, 1 May 2023
At a more than two-hour sentencing hearing before Chief U.S. District Judge John J. McConnell Jr. in Providence Tuesday, prosecutors and victims described the litany of Cavanaugh’s schemes, from bilking charities out of hundreds of thousands of dollars to cadging beers at a local bar.
—Brian Amaral, BostonGlobe.com, 14 Mar. 2023
See All Example Sentences for cadge
Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 10 June 2025
Ansa works in a Helsinki supermarket, collecting expired food and cadging the odd casserole for her dinner.
—Ann Hornaday, Washington Post, 4 Dec. 2023
One weekend, a colleague cadged a Chrysler minivan.
—Brett Berk, Car and Driver, 1 May 2023
At a more than two-hour sentencing hearing before Chief U.S. District Judge John J. McConnell Jr. in Providence Tuesday, prosecutors and victims described the litany of Cavanaugh’s schemes, from bilking charities out of hundreds of thousands of dollars to cadging beers at a local bar.
—Brian Amaral, BostonGlobe.com, 14 Mar. 2023
See All Example Sentences for cadge
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cadge
Verb
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With their strong lines and solid structure, fences are just begging to be planted with vines and other climbing plants.—
Kim Toscano,
Southern Living,
19 Feb. 2026
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In a TikTok on Wednesday, the singer-songwriter begged Wikipedia users to stop changing the photo on her page.—
Kory Grow,
Rolling Stone,
19 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Hearst maintained that she was coerced, but she was convicted and sentenced to 35 years in prison.—
David Faris,
TheWeek,
16 Feb. 2026
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The state’s prisons unconstitutionally coerced labor by levying severe punishments — including solitary confinement — against prisoners who refused to work, Denver District Court Judge Sarah Wallace found in the 61-page ruling.—
Shelly Bradbury,
Denver Post,
16 Feb. 2026
Verb
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While food options tend to cater for more refined taste buds, staff are committed to sourcing anything younger guests may request.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
18 Feb. 2026
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This note, the latest in a series, demanded the money in a cryptocurrency other than Bitcoin, which the previous notes had requested, according to the outlet.—
Joseph Wilkinson,
New York Daily News,
18 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Kidd was noncommittal when asked if Flagg will play at all on Dallas’ upcoming three-game road trip, which has stops in Minnesota, Indiana and Brooklyn.—
Christian Clark,
New York Times,
20 Feb. 2026
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Through a stellar debut season, freshman Jazzy Davidson has done everything for USC that was asked of her.—
Ryan Kartje,
Los Angeles Times,
20 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The type of memory flashbacks that are shot at knee level, gauzy and out of focus, with a gossamer visual touch to conjure whispering, buried emotions of the past.—
Ryan Lattanzio,
IndieWire,
17 Feb. 2026
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Emerald Fennell’s pictorial talents — her ability to conjure images of striking, almost fantastical beauty — mesh remarkably well with the twisted, heated emotions of Brontë’s novel.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
16 Feb. 2026
Verb
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On top of that, Nico is also, quite obviously, just mooching off/clinging to Mindy because he got cut off by his family.—
Jessica M. Goldstein,
Vulture,
19 Dec. 2025
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The Netflix rep says there is no correlation between this change and people mooching off other people's accounts.—
Boone Ashworth,
Wired News,
1 Dec. 2025
Verb
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Identification requires letting Chinese cultural logic influence the structure of a campaign — not just its visuals or celebrity cast.—
Yiling Pan,
Vogue,
17 Feb. 2026
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Whatever chemistry is required for incredible players to band together existed immediately, and the remaining outfield players worked hard to support them, defend and create chances to put the ball in behind opponents on counterattacks.—
Josh Gross,
Daily News,
17 Feb. 2026
Verb
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They’re used to jetlagged, demanding business travelers as well as jetlagged, demanding families with kids.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
22 Feb. 2026
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In a long post on X, White demanded that Frank Vandenbroucke, Belgium’s health minister, intervene in the case.—
Christian Edwards,
CNN Money,
21 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Cadge.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cadge. Accessed 23 Feb. 2026.
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