1
as in won
to receive as return for effort
during my teen years I earned pocket money by mowing lawns
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Recent Examples of earned
Velasco's wife, a teacher who earned her doctorate alongside him, pushed him to change his approach.
—
Erick Trevino, AZCentral.com, 7 Sep. 2025
The scene touched the hearts of viewers and earned rave reviews from critics.
—Carson Blackwelder, PEOPLE, 7 Sep. 2025
And, there's Il Fagiano, which earned its first Michelin star in 2024 under chef Maurizio Bufi.
—Susmita Baral, Travel + Leisure, 7 Sep. 2025
By Forbes’ count, at least 14 billionaires earned early paychecks at such chains – often spending long hours frying foods, scrubbing bathrooms and emptying trash for minimum wages.
—Martina Castellanos, Forbes.com, 6 Sep. 2025
That instinct proved to be a good one, as the first Deadpool film earned over $780 million globally and spawned two additional sequels, 2018's Deadpool 2 (which earned $785 million worldwide) and 2014's Deadpool & Wolverine, which nearly doubled both films' hauls in terms of global ticket sales.
—Joey Nolfi, Entertainment Weekly, 6 Sep. 2025
Dreyer earned his league-leading 18th assist.
—The San Diego Union Tribune, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 Sep. 2025
The series earned Anime of the Year honors at the Crunchyroll Anime Awards in both 2021 and 2024.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 31 Aug. 2025
Hamlin earned a scholarship this season and Campbell said this was one of the most pivotal moments of his career.
—Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 Mar. 2025
Erick Trevino, AZCentral.com, 7 Sep. 2025
The scene touched the hearts of viewers and earned rave reviews from critics.
—Carson Blackwelder, PEOPLE, 7 Sep. 2025
And, there's Il Fagiano, which earned its first Michelin star in 2024 under chef Maurizio Bufi.
—Susmita Baral, Travel + Leisure, 7 Sep. 2025
By Forbes’ count, at least 14 billionaires earned early paychecks at such chains – often spending long hours frying foods, scrubbing bathrooms and emptying trash for minimum wages.
—Martina Castellanos, Forbes.com, 6 Sep. 2025
That instinct proved to be a good one, as the first Deadpool film earned over $780 million globally and spawned two additional sequels, 2018's Deadpool 2 (which earned $785 million worldwide) and 2014's Deadpool & Wolverine, which nearly doubled both films' hauls in terms of global ticket sales.
—Joey Nolfi, Entertainment Weekly, 6 Sep. 2025
Dreyer earned his league-leading 18th assist.
—The San Diego Union Tribune, San Diego Union-Tribune, 1 Sep. 2025
The series earned Anime of the Year honors at the Crunchyroll Anime Awards in both 2021 and 2024.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 31 Aug. 2025
Hamlin earned a scholarship this season and Campbell said this was one of the most pivotal moments of his career.
—Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 Mar. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for earned
Verb
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Charlotte forced five Tar Heels three-and-outs, held them to 33% on third-down attempts, and won the time of possession battle.—
Hunter Bailey,
Charlotte Observer,
7 Sep. 2025
-
After the Yankees won two of three in Houston to start their gauntlet of 12 straight against current playoff teams, Judge was in the lineup and playing right field.—
Larry Fleisher,
Forbes.com,
7 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The referendum about who deserved the MVP last year — Allen won it, Jackson had superior numbers — will not be decided here, but Jackson certainly can state his case.—
Jack Magruder,
Forbes.com,
6 Sep. 2025
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But Wolfe’s good point, in his writing on architecture, was that there was an immense reservoir of idiomatic American style that deserved to be taken as seriously—or, more to the point, as joyfully—as any European art-school dogma.—
Adam Gopnik,
New Yorker,
6 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The post quickly gained traction, receiving over 2,700 upvotes.—
Lydia Patrick,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Sep. 2025
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Startups gained an edge by staying lean, automating manual work and cutting anything that doesn’t drive growth or profit.—
Expert Panel®,
Forbes.com,
2 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Ahead of the season, the set has already garnered glowing reviews from Amazon shoppers for its versatility.—
Mariana Best,
Better Homes & Gardens,
3 Sep. 2025
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On TikTok, there are endless videos featuring fan theories and commentary that have garnered thousands of views.—
Olivia Petter,
Vogue,
2 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Through these changes in price and wait times, the defendants have reaped growing profits, according to the complaint.—
Kelli Arseneau,
jsonline.com,
4 Sep. 2025
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Chicago reaped the benefits of Burden's slide and may have nabbed one of the draft's biggest steals as a result.—
Matthew Schmidt,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The Star obtained documents that show the aggregate year-over-year percent change in Platte County’s total residential property valuations from 2019 to 2025.—
Madeline King,
Kansas City Star,
7 Sep. 2025
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All three charges are marked domestic violence-related, per the presiding judge and court records obtained by PEOPLE.—
Nicholas Rice,
PEOPLE,
7 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Also made from nonporous silicone, each liner is made from food-grade silicone that’s nontoxic and BPA-free.—
Stephanie Osmanski,
Better Homes & Gardens,
7 Sep. 2025
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The right-hander made his second start with the organization on Saturday.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
7 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Marcell Ozuna was the DH in each of the next 16 games after that game, before splitting those duties in the past week as Murphy, Acuña and Profar each got one start at DH.—
David O'Brien,
New York Times,
2 Sep. 2025
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Judging from the excitement that could be heard in Murphy's voice, the Silverdome years got even better for he and his father when future Hall of Fame running back Barry Sanders joined the Lions in 1989.—
Scott Talley,
Freep.com,
2 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Earned.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/earned. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
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