1
as in demands
to ask for (something) earnestly or with authority
every war inevitably exacts the greatest sacrifice possible from some of the nation's best and brightest
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in imposes
to establish or apply as a charge or penalty
vowed to exact a heavy fine from any hockey player engaging in such outrageous behavior on the ice
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of exacts
All of this exacts a fuzzy psychological toll.
—
Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 20 Oct. 2025
One game for the division (and the division’s one playoff spot)… And Seattle exacts revenge for 2019.
—Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 6 Sep. 2025
All the other cord cutting exacts its pound of flesh!
—Brett Owens, Forbes.com, 7 Aug. 2025
Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 20 Oct. 2025
One game for the division (and the division’s one playoff spot)… And Seattle exacts revenge for 2019.
—Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 6 Sep. 2025
All the other cord cutting exacts its pound of flesh!
—Brett Owens, Forbes.com, 7 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for exacts
Verb
-
Teddy demands that Michelle take him and Don to her Andromedan leader in the hope of forcing the invaders to retreat.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
24 Oct. 2025
-
This isn’t healthful in-person power play, which demands from its participants certain sensitivities, or at least the social acumen to leave one’s home and look another person in the eye.—
Daniel Kolitz,
Harpers Magazine,
24 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Each moment of combat imposes a strain so great that men will break down in direct relation to the intensity and duration of their exposure.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
14 Oct. 2025
-
The compromise imposes a needless five-step test for proper rear-seat seat-belt use.—
The Editorial Board,
Oc Register,
14 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
The parts of California where going someplace requires getting on a highway and driving for thirty minutes feel like both Costco’s native habitat and my own.—
Molly Fischer,
New Yorker,
20 Oct. 2025
-
Overlooking Eaton Place, the sky-high oasis offers the privacy and luxury that a rock legend requires.—
Demetrius Simms,
Robb Report,
20 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
And now, one such creation slithers, squeezes, and twists through the narrowest corners.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
16 Oct. 2025
-
The surgeon withdraws the balloon and then squeezes the implant in through a sterile funnel before closing the incision.—
Jolene Edgar,
Allure,
15 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Exacts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/exacts. Accessed 27 Oct. 2025.
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