as in stung
to charge (someone) too much for goods or services
since I had forgotten the sunscreen, I was forced to buy it from the concession stand at the beach—where they gouged me for it
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 gouged
Successive hurricanes had gouged a hole in the Sunshine State, leaving several private carriers insolvent — and leaving hundreds of thousands of their customers with no choice but Citizens.
—
Mario Ariza, ProPublica, 15 Sep. 2025
But a low spot in the ocean, a channel gouged down into the sand on the ocean surface, or a break in a sandbar, can disrupt that flow and push water through the spot to create a current much more powerful than the surrounding flow.
—Jennifer Borresen, USA Today, 20 Aug. 2025
The greedy people will get theirs when people get fed up with being gouged at every turn.
—Ticked Off, The Orlando Sentinel, 15 Aug. 2025
Mario Ariza, ProPublica, 15 Sep. 2025
But a low spot in the ocean, a channel gouged down into the sand on the ocean surface, or a break in a sandbar, can disrupt that flow and push water through the spot to create a current much more powerful than the surrounding flow.
—Jennifer Borresen, USA Today, 20 Aug. 2025
The greedy people will get theirs when people get fed up with being gouged at every turn.
—Ticked Off, The Orlando Sentinel, 15 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gouged
Verb
-
Last year’s finals loss stung because the Lynx came so close.—
Ben Pickman,
New York Times,
29 Sep. 2025
-
Congressional Democrats feel stung by the mass layoffs and program cuts that followed the last stopgap spending deal in March.—
Ronald J. Hansen,
AZCentral.com,
25 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Around the time that the reunion aired, however, allegations that Pepe cheated began to circulate.—
Liza Esquibias,
PEOPLE,
25 Sep. 2025
-
Passed over to his hapless son (Dacre Montgomery), our (anti-)hero wires a shotgun to his head and takes him hostage, claiming that the organization’s business maneuvers cheated him out of a substantial fortune.—
Radhika Seth,
Vogue,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Flat-rate pricing leads to value misalignment, high-usage customers feel undercharged, and low-usage customers feel overcharged.—
Chris Kent,
Forbes.com,
1 Sep. 2025
-
The sale was made by an international brokerage firm, owned by Boulos’ cousin, which overcharged the seemingly business savvy Kushner by millions of dollars and worked to conceal the true price.—
Martha Ross,
Mercury News,
22 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
The Bahamas are still enduring Imelda’s winds and heavy rain after being soaked over the weekend, even as the storm started to move away Monday afternoon.—
Briana Waxman,
CNN Money,
29 Sep. 2025
-
Much of the Bahamas are expected to be soaked — with six to twelve inches of rain in the heaviest spots near the northwest — and be swept by winds of 45 mph and up as the depression strengthens into Tropical Storm Imelda as early as today.—
Alex Harris
Updated September 28,
Miami Herald,
28 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Gouged.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gouged. Accessed 6 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share