dug

past tense of dig
1
as in excavated
to hollow out or form (something) by removing earth a backhoe dug a hole in the backyard to make a swimming pool

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

2
3
4
as in poked
to urge or push forward with or as if with a pointed object every time I slowed down, he'd dig me in the ribs

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 dug The designer, who styled the show himself, looked to music, a consistent muse, and dug his aesthetic heels into the '90s grunge look. Roxanne Robinson, Forbes.com, 16 Sep. 2025 Vineyards in Lanzarote are one of a kind—mini craters, or hoyos, are dug by hand to grow grapes in volcanic ash, known as picón. Lauren David, Travel + Leisure, 16 Sep. 2025 These are all statements said in an attempt to draw concern from you to contact the source of the email and fall into the rabbit hole the scammers have dug. Suzanne Blake, MSNBC Newsweek, 15 Sep. 2025 Earlier in the game, the defense repeatedly dug itself out of holes to put USC in a position to win. Haley Sawyer, Oc Register, 14 Sep. 2025 With Xayavong still missing, Finnegan dug deeper into Jorgenson’s previous messages and searched for references to a storage unit. Mara H. Gottfried, Twin Cities, 14 Sep. 2025 Infant accessories dug-up from the previous owner’s storage at the estate sale might still contain lead paint or choking hazards, and Ziomek advises to beware especially of any accessories involving sleeping, when babies are particularly vulnerable. Hallie Milstein, Southern Living, 12 Sep. 2025 O’Steen bludgeoned Marissa Grimes, dug a shallow grave for her under his house in west Fort Worth and for 10 days lived above where police later sawed open the floor to expose Grimes’ decomposing 135-pound body, prosecutors have argued that the evidence shows. Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 12 Sep. 2025 By then, Easy has become a viral hit, Sam has dug himself in way too deep, and Mickey is itching to show his true colors. Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 12 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dug
Verb
  • The estate was excavated in Kafr Qasim, a city in the central region of the country.
    Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 15 Sep. 2025
  • Covered in concrete and lost to time for decades, the vats were rediscovered and excavated in 2016 within a building that hugs the Kentucky River.
    Robin Roenker, Southern Living, 13 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Harried enjoyed a colorful green and purple display with vast pillars reaching high into the sky, as well as a subtle green glow as activity began to wane.
    Daisy Dobrijevic, Space.com, 17 Sep. 2025
  • But mortgage rates remain elevated above 6%, freezing activity in the housing market that enjoyed a tremendous boom during the pandemic thanks to sub-3% mortgage rates.
    Preston Fore, Fortune, 16 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Who knew the antidote for my incurable pixie cut envy would be a 13-second video of Kate Middleton?
    Emily Tannenbaum, Glamour, 12 Sep. 2025
  • Prine’s health issues of the previous couple of decades were no secret—the throat cancer, the operation for lung cancer, and God knew what else.
    Tom Piazza September 12, Literary Hub, 12 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • No movie poked holes in the stereotypical puffy rock-star ego more effectively than Spinal Tap did, and there are legions of fans who have the film almost completely memorized.
    Stephanie Zacharek, Time, 11 Sep. 2025
  • After the cyberstalking ordeal came to an end and started making national news, the Wilsons poked fun at Kendra's fate by dressing up a scarecrow in a prison jumpsuit with a mask of her mugshot over its face, per The Cut.
    Caroline Blair, PEOPLE, 11 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Trump heard it, liked it, and began repeating it himself.
    Eric Cortellessa, Time, 11 Sep. 2025
  • In this photo, mama, who liked posing for the camera, supervises her litter of kittens.
    Cecilia Rodriguez, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Now in production, the indie feature stars Dern as steadfast patriarch Gramps, whose daughter Shay (Thompson) is a single mother navigating the ADHD diagnosis of one of her identical twin sons, who shares his medication with his brother in attempt to be understood, sparking an unforgettable summer.
    Glenn Garner, Deadline, 14 Sep. 2025
  • Christian Siriano has always understood the art of drama.
    Essence, Essence, 14 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Just after noon, officers from BPD and the School Police Unit responded to a report of a teen stabbed in the Roxbury high school building, spokesperson Sgt.
    Grace Zokovitch, Boston Herald, 13 Sep. 2025
  • Frank was also found bound in the basement, stabbed multiple times in the neck and chest.
    Bonny Chu, FOXNews.com, 13 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Our testers also loved how the Japanese stainless steel blade gently exfoliates and easily glides along and around the contours of your face.
    Sophia Panych, Allure, 16 Sep. 2025
  • Murphy and Greco make fresh thin crust pizza that Jack and I loved.
    Greg Sullivan, AFAR Media, 15 Sep. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Dug.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dug. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.

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