as in stench
a strong unpleasant smell
the overpowering funk of rotten meat emanated from the garbage bin
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in coward
a person who shows a shameful lack of courage in the face of danger
he may be a strong, athletic guy, but he's a real funk when it comes to donating blood
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of funk
Keith Murphy, VIBE.com, 21 Apr. 2026
Where 2025’s 1000 Variations on the Same Song played with funk undercurrents and The Count leaned toward slower R&B, Frog for Sale is an exercise in cabaret basics.
—Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 20 Apr. 2026
Spin Contributor, SPIN, 20 Dec. 2024
But Minchin and Alcock are an electric duo, their bristling anti-chemistry transmuting their characters’ respective funks from mostly unwatchable to genuinely compelling.
—Alexis Gunderson, Vulture, 8 Oct. 2024
See All Example Sentences for funk
Noun
This simply could not be… not Prince, the genius, larger-than-life singer, songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist who rebirthed pop music into a new sensuous funk-new wave-rock-soul musical form known to the world as the Minneapolis Sound.
—Keith Murphy, VIBE.com, 21 Apr. 2026
Where 2025’s 1000 Variations on the Same Song played with funk undercurrents and The Count leaned toward slower R&B, Frog for Sale is an exercise in cabaret basics.
—Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 20 Apr. 2026
Verb
And there’s always more rising DIY stars on the horizon, ranging from rock to funk to pop to neo-soul.
—Spin Contributor, SPIN, 20 Dec. 2024
But Minchin and Alcock are an electric duo, their bristling anti-chemistry transmuting their characters’ respective funks from mostly unwatchable to genuinely compelling.
—Alexis Gunderson, Vulture, 8 Oct. 2024
See All Example Sentences for funk
Recent Examples of Synonyms for funk
Verb
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Romano ran and ducked behind a parked car.—
Teri Figueroa,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
18 Apr. 2026
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But anyone who’s 5’6 or above is going to have to duck down.—
Lisa Gutierrez,
Kansas City Star,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The Yankees will look to avoid its first series sweep Sunday with Cam Schlittler on the mound against Tampa Bay’s Drew Rasmussen.—
Fiifi Frimpong,
New York Daily News,
12 Apr. 2026
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The troop carrier planes became bogged down in the soil and had to be destroyed by the US to avoid them falling into enemy hands, while new planes were flown in.—
The Week UK,
TheWeek,
11 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Stalwarts such as Chicago and Philadelphia (each +4%) that never got pricey to begin with are now reaping the benefits of being shunned in the pre-pandemic world.—
Shawn Tully,
Fortune,
11 Apr. 2026
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Xi’s outreach to Cheng came along with overt swipes at Taiwan’s current government under President Lai Ching-te, who is shunned by Beijing as a dangerous ‘separatist’ for rejecting China’s claim that Taiwan is its territory.—
Janis Mackey Frayer,
NBC news,
10 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The situation is also an opportunity for NASA to resume the kind of risk-taking that has been lacking to shake the agency out of a post-space-shuttle lethargy and to reignite passions for reaching a stretch goal under deadline pressure.—
Thomas Black,
Mercury News,
24 Apr. 2026
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The front car of the train appeared to jump the track, leaving passengers shaken.—
Todd Feurer,
CBS News,
24 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Webb dodged a question about whether the pitch was a response to the thing that happened with Rushing and Lee.—
Bill Shaikin,
Los Angeles Times,
23 Apr. 2026
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Bats can fly through total darkness, dodge obstacles at high speed, and weave through caves without crashing.—
Jacob Wycoff,
CBS News,
22 Apr. 2026
Verb
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In one version of the script, Alonzo managed to escape, but Washington and Fuqua decided against it.—
Kelefa Sanneh,
New Yorker,
20 Apr. 2026
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To escape North Korea, the Kims would need to evade patrol boats and cross what is known as the Northern Limit Line (NLL) – a tense, disputed maritime boundary between North and South Korea.—
Mike Valerio,
CNN Money,
19 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Funk.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/funk. Accessed 26 Apr. 2026.
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