1
as in urging
to try to persuade (someone) through earnest appeals to follow a course of action
tried to goad me into auditioning for the play
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in poking
to urge or push forward with or as if with a pointed object
goading the horse forward into the stall
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of goading
Reporters looking to stir up trouble in the press room were goading American players, particularly those with foreign-sounding last names.
—
Beth Herman, Boston Herald, 6 Feb. 2026
Julian and Neil take to goading and championing the understandably hangdog Matt.
—Lisa Kennedy, Variety, 5 Feb. 2026
Agents made several arrests in supermarket parking lots and at tamale stands while goading angry residents who confronted them and threatening to unleash tear gas.
—Jason Meisner, Chicago Tribune, 23 Jan. 2026
The mind thrills to imagine a genderless prophet among the brocades and buckskin breeches of Revolutionary America, weirding out the normies, sticking a flower in the barrel of a musket, and goading the new nation to let its hair down—literally.
—Dan Piepenbring, Harpers Magazine, 30 Dec. 2025
Anthropic’s Claude wanted to know whether my headache was tension-related, due to sinus pressure, or something else entirely—hardly a goading question.
—Lila Shroff, The Atlantic, 22 Sep. 2025
Beth Herman, Boston Herald, 6 Feb. 2026
Julian and Neil take to goading and championing the understandably hangdog Matt.
—Lisa Kennedy, Variety, 5 Feb. 2026
Agents made several arrests in supermarket parking lots and at tamale stands while goading angry residents who confronted them and threatening to unleash tear gas.
—Jason Meisner, Chicago Tribune, 23 Jan. 2026
The mind thrills to imagine a genderless prophet among the brocades and buckskin breeches of Revolutionary America, weirding out the normies, sticking a flower in the barrel of a musket, and goading the new nation to let its hair down—literally.
—Dan Piepenbring, Harpers Magazine, 30 Dec. 2025
Anthropic’s Claude wanted to know whether my headache was tension-related, due to sinus pressure, or something else entirely—hardly a goading question.
—Lila Shroff, The Atlantic, 22 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for goading
Verb
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The Sierra Avalanche Center reports high avalanche risk through at least this morning, urging people to avoid travel in or below avalanche terrain.—
James Ward,
USA Today,
18 Feb. 2026
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The Pima County sheriff took the unusual step of publicly clearing the family as suspects, urging the public to show compassion toward the victims.—
Hannah Fry,
Los Angeles Times,
18 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The Telltale Signs of Rotary Motion The re-examination revealed unmistakable evidence that this was no simple awl meant for poking holes.—
Ryan Brennan,
Miami Herald,
13 Feb. 2026
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Garlic is a kitchen staple for many, but spotting a green sprout poking out of a clove can raise questions about food safety.—
Caitlin Beale,
Health,
11 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Buying local products, providing local and state funding sources, supporting agricultural preservation programs, encouraging lawmakers to prioritize the importance of farming and supporting local agriculture education programs are partial solutions.—
Joe Dymek,
Baltimore Sun,
15 Feb. 2026
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Your 4th House of Home becomes a deep well as the nurturing Moon conjoins unearthing Pluto there, encouraging you to cleanse closets and clear emotional dust.—
Tarot.com,
The Orlando Sentinel,
15 Feb. 2026
Verb
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At his confirmation hearing, Kennedy refused to disavow links between vaccines and autism, a favorite theory of outfits spurring vaccine hesitancy among parents, though numerous studies have found no connection.—
Dan Vergano,
Scientific American,
13 Feb. 2026
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In a Wednesday post on Truth Social, the president touted the strong January jobs gain and insisted the Fed should cut interest rates to keep spurring growth.—
Sylvan Lane,
The Hill,
11 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Cogan appears to be nudging the Supreme Court to change its approach to determining what is and isn’t considered a crime of violence.—
John Annese,
Mercury News,
17 Feb. 2026
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Cogan appears to be nudging the Supreme Court to change its approach to determining what is and isn’t considered a crime of violence.—
John Annese,
New York Daily News,
16 Feb. 2026
Verb
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There are close-ups of hands kneading dough, a snail sliming its way up a window and Cathy prodding a jellied fish with her finger.—
Emily Zemler,
Los Angeles Times,
11 Feb. 2026
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Elliott, which took a $4 billion stake in PepsiCo in September, has been prodding the company’s board to make changes, saying PepsiCo was being hurt by slowing growth and lower profits in its North American food and beverage business.—
Dee-Ann Durbin,
Chicago Tribune,
3 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Mohammed Ahmad Hussein al-Halsi was sentenced in 2016 to 18 years behind bars for stabbing elderly women.—
Landon Mion,
FOXNews.com,
13 Feb. 2026
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Another Jefferson County circuit judge, Jessica Green, last year drew local and national criticism after granting shock probation to a 32-year-old man accused of abducting a mother and two children and stabbing the mother during a bank robbery.—
Monroe Trombly,
Louisville Courier Journal,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Additionally, the actor is accused of assaulting another man by punching him in the nose, police say.—
Anna Kaufman,
USA Today,
18 Feb. 2026
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The police statement claims that upon being released, LaBeouf struck the same man with his fists before allegedly punching another man in the nose.—
Shania Russell,
Entertainment Weekly,
17 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Goading.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/goading. Accessed 21 Feb. 2026.
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