as in halt
a point in a struggle where neither side is capable of winning or willing to give in
with the White House controlled by one party and Congress by the other, the nation experienced four years of legislative gridlock
Synonyms & Similar Words
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as in to fill
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of gridlock
Lora Kolodny, CNBC, 24 Feb. 2026
Yoon, who can appeal the ruling, had denied the insurrection charge, saying his imposition of martial law was meant to alert the public to paralysing political gridlock caused by the opposition party’s majority in the National Assembly and its impeachment of several senior officials.
—Helen Regan, CNN Money, 19 Feb. 2026
Dj Gribbin, New York Daily News, 7 Feb. 2025
Cincinnati Just as a three- or four-team tie atop the Big 12 feels likely, so, too, does gridlock in the cellar.
—Jon Wilner, The Mercury News, 28 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for gridlock
Noun
Waymo vehicles stopped in the middle of some roads and contributed to gridlock.
—Lora Kolodny, CNBC, 24 Feb. 2026
Yoon, who can appeal the ruling, had denied the insurrection charge, saying his imposition of martial law was meant to alert the public to paralysing political gridlock caused by the opposition party’s majority in the National Assembly and its impeachment of several senior officials.
—Helen Regan, CNN Money, 19 Feb. 2026
Verb
While the state Assembly derailed that initial plan, forfeiting the grant, the push for a practical remedy to gridlock never died.
—Dj Gribbin, New York Daily News, 7 Feb. 2025
Cincinnati Just as a three- or four-team tie atop the Big 12 feels likely, so, too, does gridlock in the cellar.
—Jon Wilner, The Mercury News, 28 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for gridlock
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gridlock
Noun
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Traffic through the critical waterway has since ground to a near halt, with vessels being attacked and insurers dropping maritime coverage.—
Katie Hunt,
CNN Money,
6 Mar. 2026
-
Tanker traffic has ground to a near halt, 20% of global supply has been paralyzed, and the old-world energy order has been shaken.—
Siddharth Misra,
Fortune,
6 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
New horizons call as the shimmering Sun in your curious 9th house trines buoyant Jupiter, filling you with inspiration to travel far and wide (literally or mentally).—
Tarot.com,
Sun Sentinel,
5 Mar. 2026
-
The room was absolutely filled, speaking to the urgency of the topic.—
Monisha Ravisetti,
Space.com,
5 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The development marks a new crisis in the Balkan country that already went through a snap vote in December after a nearly yearlong political deadlock.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
6 Mar. 2026
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Anthropic, according to a story in The Atlantic, was particularly concerned about the Pentagon using its technology for this kind of analysis and that its insistence on curtailing that use case was one of the major stumbling blocks to breaking its deadlock with the DOW.—
Jeremy Kahn,
Fortune,
2 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Carlin Karr, director of wine and beverage at Stuckey’s restaurants — including Michelin-starred and James Beard Award-winning Frasca Food and Wine in Boulder — believes roughly 1 in 10 wine bottles are off in taste, or corked.—
Jeremy Harlan,
CNN Money,
16 July 2025
-
Public opposition to the fee helped cork the proposal.—
Sarah Scoles,
JSTOR Daily,
11 June 2025
Noun
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After bargaining talks toward a new contract had reached an impasse, the union voted in January to authorize a strike.—
Jemma Stephenson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
7 Mar. 2026
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Anderson says the men have reached an impasse and is asking a judge to dissolve their business connections.—
Clara Harter,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The rock was originally silt on the seafloor that, it's argued, hosted early microbial life that was buried by more silt, leaving the carbon as their remains.—
Howard Lee,
ArsTechnica,
11 Aug. 2025
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Historically, the region itself was created by the natural flooding and silting processes of the Mississippi River, which flows across the breadth of the state before spilling into the Gulf of America.—
David Blackmon,
Forbes.com,
18 June 2025
Noun
-
The Iran war has brought oil tanker traffic through the strait to a virtual standstill.—
Joe Walsh,
CBS News,
3 Mar. 2026
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Tanker traffic had already come to a standstill as ship owners took precautionary measures due to the widening war in the Middle East.—
Spencer Kimball,
CNBC,
3 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Those warheads typically carry 30 kg to 50 kg of explosives and can pack a punch, particularly when used in large swarms, with advanced versions capable of a range of up to 1,200 miles.—
Dylan Butts,
CNBC,
5 Mar. 2026
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The storms are packing quarter-sized hail (1 inch).—
STAR-TELEGRAM WEATHER BOT,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
5 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Gridlock.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gridlock. Accessed 10 Mar. 2026.
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