as in resentments
a lingering ill will towards a person for a real or imagined wrong
he's had a grudge against her ever since she snubbed him at the dance
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Recent Examples of grudges
Raechal Shewfelt, Entertainment Weekly, 2 June 2026
Part of the dispute appears to have had less to do with paint and canvas than old grudges.
—Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 2 June 2026
Ultimately, grudges are rarely just bitter indignation alone.
—Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 1 June 2026
Jesse Minter and Mike McCarthy inherit a rivalry built on field goals, grudges and games that look like they were filmed through cigar smoke.
—Eddie Brown, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 May 2026
Internal drama — employee hook-ups, power plays, longstanding grudges — share space with the mix of the mundane and the outrageous that constitutes a typical day in a typical big-city emergency department.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 17 Apr. 2026
Voters are fragments of coalitions, habits, grudges, identities, and instincts.
—Matt Klink, Oc Register, 16 Apr. 2026
Netflix’s Beef season 1 is the perfect demonstration of how grudges can spiral out of control, leading to a finale that’s as chaotic as the feud that drives it.
—Jane Lacroix, PEOPLE, 15 Apr. 2026
The President is, after all, known for his volatile temper and for holding grudges.
—Stylecaster Editors, StyleCaster, 6 Apr. 2026
Noun
Vaughn also asked her roughly 84,000 followers not to hold any grudges.
—Raechal Shewfelt, Entertainment Weekly, 2 June 2026
Part of the dispute appears to have had less to do with paint and canvas than old grudges.
—Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 2 June 2026
Ultimately, grudges are rarely just bitter indignation alone.
—Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 1 June 2026
Jesse Minter and Mike McCarthy inherit a rivalry built on field goals, grudges and games that look like they were filmed through cigar smoke.
—Eddie Brown, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 May 2026
Internal drama — employee hook-ups, power plays, longstanding grudges — share space with the mix of the mundane and the outrageous that constitutes a typical day in a typical big-city emergency department.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 17 Apr. 2026
Voters are fragments of coalitions, habits, grudges, identities, and instincts.
—Matt Klink, Oc Register, 16 Apr. 2026
Netflix’s Beef season 1 is the perfect demonstration of how grudges can spiral out of control, leading to a finale that’s as chaotic as the feud that drives it.
—Jane Lacroix, PEOPLE, 15 Apr. 2026
The President is, after all, known for his volatile temper and for holding grudges.
—Stylecaster Editors, StyleCaster, 6 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for grudges
Noun
-
Better that there be no resentments about money, better that Adele learn that rash decisions had lasting costs.—
Jonathan Franzen,
New Yorker,
1 June 2026
-
These same resentments likely erupted in the murder of Clapham and in the solidarity a great many local people felt with the Panis woman.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
26 May 2026
Verb
-
Trump called Talarico weak on crime, insulting to Jesus Christ, a big mask wearer, and a vegan who dislikes meat.—
Maven Navarro
May 27,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
27 May 2026
-
Sam Brunson, a nonprofit law professor at Loyola University Chicago, told Fortune that as a general rule, a donor who dislikes how a charity later spends its money has no recourse beyond ceasing to donate.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
28 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Writing this column has truly fed my soul, never mind given me an outlet for all manner of grief and grievances, whining and winnings.—
Inga,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
8 June 2026
-
And like Limbaugh, who built himself from a radio shock jock to a media titan by feeding listeners’ grievances, Fuentes tells his audience a story that encourages them to channel their anxieties and frustrations into disdain and hate for women and non-white people.—
Donie O'Sullivan,
CNN Money,
6 June 2026
Verb
-
The film exists because the dead deserve to be witnessed and because the families inside Iran, who cannot speak, deserve someone outside who refuses to forget.—
Anna Tingley,
Variety,
2 June 2026
-
Walt asks Jesse to kill him, but Jesse refuses and tells him to do it himself.—
Brianna Zigler,
Entertainment Weekly,
2 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Grudges.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/grudges. Accessed 10 Jun. 2026.
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