as in extortion
the exaction of a grossly excessive charge for goods or services
a hotline that consumers may use to report gouging at gasoline stations
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
as in stinging
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
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of gouging
James Grebey, Vulture, 12 Aug. 2025
A.a. Dowd, Vulture, 3 Oct. 2025
There’s no question Newsom — who had spent months excoriating refiners for gouging consumers on gasoline prices, even calling a special legislative session to impose new regulations — changed his tune after two refineries announced plans to shut down.
—Dan Walters, Mercury News, 30 Sep. 2025
Time for the city to stop gouging us and start being more responsible with taxpayer money.
—U T Readers, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Sep. 2025
The residency’s first nine shows were only available to Puerto Rico residents, and when tickets went on sale in January, the prices for all shows ranged between $35 and $250, a rarity in an era of concert price-gouging and Ticketmaster wars.
—Maya Rosenberg, NBC news, 13 Sep. 2025
Minadeo jumped on Buck's back and put him in a choke hold while gouging at his eyes, according to the lawsuit.
—Craig Shoup, The Tennessean, 21 Aug. 2025
Noun
Even if what Weyland-Yutani has is blood-sucking, eye-gouging, and chest-bursting alien monsters.
—James Grebey, Vulture, 12 Aug. 2025
Verb
At least the climactic pandemonium has some of that old REC intensity; Plaza dynamically orchestrates the violence, dazzling the eyes of his audience one minute, gouging the eyes of his characters the next.
—A.a. Dowd, Vulture, 3 Oct. 2025
There’s no question Newsom — who had spent months excoriating refiners for gouging consumers on gasoline prices, even calling a special legislative session to impose new regulations — changed his tune after two refineries announced plans to shut down.
—Dan Walters, Mercury News, 30 Sep. 2025
Time for the city to stop gouging us and start being more responsible with taxpayer money.
—U T Readers, San Diego Union-Tribune, 21 Sep. 2025
The residency’s first nine shows were only available to Puerto Rico residents, and when tickets went on sale in January, the prices for all shows ranged between $35 and $250, a rarity in an era of concert price-gouging and Ticketmaster wars.
—Maya Rosenberg, NBC news, 13 Sep. 2025
Minadeo jumped on Buck's back and put him in a choke hold while gouging at his eyes, according to the lawsuit.
—Craig Shoup, The Tennessean, 21 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gouging
Noun
-
These earlier incidents exposed names, emails and phone numbers, which were sufficient for attackers to launch phishing campaigns or extortion attempts.—
,
FOXNews.com,
7 Oct. 2025
-
Trump had previously demanded $1 billion from UCLA in exchange for restoring the frozen grants, which Newsom likened to extortion.—
Lia Russell,
Sacbee.com,
3 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Andreas Helmersen hit the bar while Patrick Berg’s stinging effort was saved by Guglielmo Vicario.—
Jay Harris,
New York Times,
1 Oct. 2025
-
These pretty pink jellyfish are carnivorous and have stinging tentacles that can reach up to 70 feet long.—
Meghan Overdeep,
Southern Living,
25 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
People make close, intense bonds when stuck in the Big Brother house together, and Vince and Morgan’s dynamic crosses more lines with each passing day, emotional cheating threatening to tip into physical even as Vince continues to hopelessly cloak his feelings in flimsy analogies and code phrases.—
Ben Rosenstock,
Vulture,
27 Sep. 2025
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Emotional cheating occurs when someone develops a strong connection with someone other than their committed partner, leading to them sharing intimate thoughts, feelings and experiences, Sara Kuburic, a psychotherapist, previously wrote in USA TODAY.—
Melina Khan,
USA Today,
25 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
California is the biggest target after the state self-reported overcharging the federal government for health care services delivered to immigrants without legal status, determined to be at least $500 million, spurring the threat of a lawsuit.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
6 Sep. 2025
-
California is the biggest target after the state self-reported overcharging the federal government for health care services delivered to immigrants without legal status, determined to be at least $500 million, spurring the threat of a lawsuit.—
Angela Hart,
Fortune,
5 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Gouging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gouging. Accessed 9 Oct. 2025.
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