grudging 1 of 2

adjective

Definition of grudgingnext
as in careful
said, done, or given in an unwilling or doubtful way Her theories have begun to win grudging acceptance in the scientific community. He has earned the grudging admiration/respect of his rivals.

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

grudging

2 of 2

verb

present participle of grudge
as in disliking

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

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 grudging
Adjective
Lanterns stars Kyle Chandler as Hal Jordan, Earth’s one and only Green Lantern, and Aaron Pierre as John Stewart, his understudy and grudging trainee. — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2026 Syrskyi, some noted with grudging respect, has built a string of defenses that have stalled Russian advances. — ABC News, 21 July 2026 In any case, the Biden Administration’s grudging acquiescence now looks like the beginning of a pattern of credulous capitulation. — David D. Kirkpatrick, New Yorker, 20 July 2026 And yet even some of Hanania’s most passionate detractors admit some grudging appreciation. — Gilad Edelman, The Atlantic, 19 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for grudging
Recent Examples of Synonyms for grudging
  1. careful
  2. disliking
  3. begrudging
  4. disapproving
  5. economical
  6. refusing
  7. covetous
  8. deploring
Adjective
  • There’s that Japanese concept of space and pause—in the wide corridors, the uncluttered lobby, the careful symmetry.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 5 Nov. 2026
  • The first step was to tailor it to her size, while being careful to preserve the bespoke construction.
    — Bella Webb, Vogue, 5 Nov. 2026
Definition of careful
Verb
  • Lorne Michaels took a liking to him (while disliking his predecessor) and took him under his wing, valuing his creative sense by asking for his feedback on writer packages and taking him to auditions.
    — Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 9 Oct. 2026
  • For Pillsbury, the issue seems to be less about disliking the name itself and more about seeing the same joke repeated online.
    — Lily Brown, PEOPLE, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of disliking
Adjective
  • With Ancelotti on the sideline, there may be more begrudging acceptance of that this time.
    — Chris Evans, Forbes.com, 5 July 2026
  • Philadelphia needs its rookie quarterback, Carson Wentz, to post 300 passing yards for a third consecutive week, because there is no running the ball against the Ravens, who have the most begrudging ground defense in the league.
    — DAVID WHITE, New York Times, 16 Dec. 2016
Definition of begrudging
Verb
  • That’s when a chorus of disapproving groans emerges from the other end of the phone line.
    — Julie Klausner, New Yorker, 29 Oct. 2026
  • With shame, this feeling is social, connected to the fear of someone else’s disapproving gaze.
    — Robert A. Ballingall, The Conversation, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of disapproving
Adjective
  • Its second job is to be relatively economical to own and operate.
    — Byron Hurd, The Drive, 5 Nov. 2026
  • The company also recently inked a first-look deal with Divide/Conquer to develop high-concept projects for an economical rate.
    — Jack Dunn, Variety, 3 Nov. 2026
Definition of economical
Verb
  • That same day, another federal district judge in a separate case in California barred DOJ from threatening election workers with criminal prosecution for refusing to stop processing ballots or resisting other demands.
    — Dan Mangan,Kevin Breuninger, CNBC, 2 Nov. 2026
  • Tanner McKee looked like a backup all night, holding the ball, taking sacks, refusing to throw downfield and turning the ball over twice.
    — Alejandro Avila OutKick, FOXNews.com, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of refusing
Adjective
  • Starring Elordi and Barry Keoghan, Fennell’s dark comedy about class resentment and covetous destruction was sold on the promise of erotic excess.
    — Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 9 Feb. 2026
  • For most players, that amount of storage is realistically enough for all but the most covetous data hoarders.
    — Matt Kamen, Wired News, 3 Aug. 2025
Definition of covetous
Verb
  • In March 2022, 141 countries supported a resolution deploring Russian aggression and demanding that Russia withdraw its forces.
    — Lidia Pilecky, Chicago Tribune, 7 Aug. 2026
  • Regardless of the level of material damage, Shiites are deploring the physical and spiritual assaults against their sacred landscape.
    — Mary Thurlkill, The Conversation, 30 Mar. 2026
Definition of deploring

Browse Nearby Words

grudges
grudging
grudgingly
See all Nearby Words

Podcast

Cite this Entry

“Grudging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/grudging. Accessed 12 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of gauntlet

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

31 Useful Rhetorical Devices

More Commonly Misspelled Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Longest Long Words List

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
woman sitting on floor holding book in front of her face on pink background
Famous Novels, Last Lines Quiz Needless to say, spoiler alert.
See All