as in hoarse
harsh and dry in sound
a croaking voice from smoking too many cigarettes
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in complaining
to express dissatisfaction, pain, or resentment usually tiresomely
the cranky patient was always croaking to the nurses about something
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in dying
slang
to stop living
I wouldn't go around saying your great-grandmother "croaked"
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in killing
slang
to deprive of life
"I croaked the old bugger," he bragged
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4
as in murdering
slang
to put to death deliberately
hooligans had croaked the street corner wino just for the hell of it
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of croaking
Ernie Cowan, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 Mar. 2026
Ernie Cowan, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 Mar. 2026
Ravens circle overhead, croaking at my presence in defiance.
—Josh Jackson, Los Angeles Times, 5 Feb. 2026
Karaoke on Ambience mainly consists of elderly monk-like men croaking out album tracks by Black Sabbath, and grey haired women wailing out ABBA songs.
—David Greig
september 15, Literary Hub, 15 Sep. 2025
Adjective
Their croaking involves pushing air over vocal cords into a thin membrane known as a vocal sac that inflates under the chin.
—Ernie Cowan, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 Mar. 2026
Verb
This process magnifies the croaking, resulting in a surprising volume of sound considering the size of the small frogs.
—Ernie Cowan, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 Mar. 2026
Ravens circle overhead, croaking at my presence in defiance.
—Josh Jackson, Los Angeles Times, 5 Feb. 2026
Karaoke on Ambience mainly consists of elderly monk-like men croaking out album tracks by Black Sabbath, and grey haired women wailing out ABBA songs.
—David Greig
september 15, Literary Hub, 15 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for croaking
Adjective
-
During the debate, Joe Biden frequently lost his train of thought, stumbled over answers, and appeared hoarse, fueling concerns among voters and party leaders.—
Claire Carter,
The Washington Examiner,
31 May 2026
-
Signs include panting, a hoarse bark, scuffing or dragging their toes along the ground, and sometimes regurgitation or swallowing problems.—
The Washington Post,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
30 May 2026
Verb
-
The move was met with outrage, with fans criticizing the singer for jumping the gun and complaining that the weather had cleared up before becoming too serious.—
Shania Russell,
Entertainment Weekly,
7 June 2026
-
Doja Cat is most likely referring to voice notes, or the audio post feature, which seemed to be discontinued on X sometime in early 2025, according to user posts complaining that the feature had been removed.—
Jack Dunn,
Variety,
4 June 2026
Verb
-
This is the starting point of Earth 7, Deb Olin Unferth’s stellar and sweeping science fiction novel that is part cosmic comedy and part dirge to our dying world.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
11 June 2026
-
Americans born after 1970 are dying faster than their parents did, data shows.—
Khloe Quill,
FOXNews.com,
10 June 2026
Verb
-
Those humans had been killing elk for a very long time and may have even followed the elk and bison onto the continent.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
10 June 2026
-
Anthony, now 19, was accused of killing Metcalf on April 2, 2025, at Kuykendall Stadium in Frisco.—
Doug Myers,
CBS News,
10 June 2026
Verb
-
Nick Reiner, accused of murdering his parents, director Rob and producer Michele Reiner, has filed a legal petition to tap his trust fund for his criminal defense.—
Emily St. Martin,
Los Angeles Times,
9 June 2026
-
Murdaugh, 57, was convicted in March 2023 of murdering his wife, Maggie, 52, and their 22-year-old son, Paul, at the family’s sprawling hunting estate in Colleton County in June 2021.—
Sarah Rumpf-Whitten,
FOXNews.com,
8 June 2026
Adjective
-
Platner, a gruff 41-year-old Marine Corps veteran, is trying to unseat Republican Senator Susan Collins with a platform of economic populism, universal health care, labor protections, and anti-interventionism.—
Elizabeth Bruenig,
The Atlantic,
4 June 2026
-
With his gruff voice, beard and sweatshirts-instead-of-suits, Platner cuts the figure of a blue-collar Mainer.—
Caroline McCaughey,
Boston Herald,
4 June 2026
Verb
-
As if each of us isn’t a walking embodiment of our moment, clueless and attuned at once, screaming about one thing and in total denial about another.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
10 June 2026
-
There were the arrests of tearful and screaming immigrants, captured on video and played on endless loops across social media.—
Moriah Balingit,
Los Angeles Times,
9 June 2026
Verb
-
Although the push to get Huang out of the race failed, the leftist’s campaign ended up falling flat, securing less than 3% of the vote in the primary.—
Noah Goldberg,
Los Angeles Times,
9 June 2026
-
Wall Street, meanwhile, got some relief from falling oil prices.—
Stan Choe,
Fortune,
9 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Croaking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/croaking. Accessed 12 Jun. 2026.
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