1
as in murmurs
speech that is not clear enough to be understood
preoccupied with what he was doing, the mechanic gave only a grunt when I asked when the car would be ready
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in laborers
a person who does very hard or dull work
we have an opening in the warehouse if you don't mind doing grunt work
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in mutters
to speak softly and unclearly
was so absorbed with the video game that when asked what he wanted for dinner, he just grunted
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of grunts
Gabriel Zamora,
PC Magazine,
26 May 2026
The crowd erupted in hearty grunts and boos after the error.
—
Kendall Staton The Washington Post,
Arkansas Online,
25 May 2026
Expect a lot of kicks, punches, chases and grunts and groans.
—
Randy Myers,
Mercury News,
23 May 2026
The Wilkes-Barre Times Leader reported that the family also experienced foul odors and heard pig grunts in the home.
—
Jessica Sager,
PEOPLE,
12 Apr. 2026
McKellen can make a terrific meal out of just a few grunts and groans, spending whole scenes mumbling about nothing in particular; meanwhile, Coel comes across as impenetrable, yet alluringly so.
—
David Sims,
The Atlantic,
10 Apr. 2026
Bachata played faintly, with plucky notes from the guitar cutting through cows' grunts.
—
Eduardo Cuevas,
USA Today,
27 Mar. 2026
The natural world is a cacophony of squawks, screeches, coos, chirps, whinnies, grunts, growls, and more.
—
Jackie Flynn Mogensen,
Scientific American,
19 Mar. 2026
Ten minutes later the jaguar was only a quarter of a mile away, responding to the call with a loud series of grunts, very deep and coarse.
—
Delbert L. Chears,
Outdoor Life,
5 Mar. 2026
Kimberly Roots,
TVLine,
5 Sep. 2025
Noun
Most fights consist of dealing with waves of basic grunts with the occasional bruiser or shooter thrown in to keep you on edge.
—
Gabriel Zamora,
PC Magazine,
26 May 2026
The crowd erupted in hearty grunts and boos after the error.
—
Kendall Staton The Washington Post,
Arkansas Online,
25 May 2026
Expect a lot of kicks, punches, chases and grunts and groans.
—
Randy Myers,
Mercury News,
23 May 2026
The Wilkes-Barre Times Leader reported that the family also experienced foul odors and heard pig grunts in the home.
—
Jessica Sager,
PEOPLE,
12 Apr. 2026
McKellen can make a terrific meal out of just a few grunts and groans, spending whole scenes mumbling about nothing in particular; meanwhile, Coel comes across as impenetrable, yet alluringly so.
—
David Sims,
The Atlantic,
10 Apr. 2026
Bachata played faintly, with plucky notes from the guitar cutting through cows' grunts.
—
Eduardo Cuevas,
USA Today,
27 Mar. 2026
The natural world is a cacophony of squawks, screeches, coos, chirps, whinnies, grunts, growls, and more.
—
Jackie Flynn Mogensen,
Scientific American,
19 Mar. 2026
Ten minutes later the jaguar was only a quarter of a mile away, responding to the call with a loud series of grunts, very deep and coarse.
—
Delbert L. Chears,
Outdoor Life,
5 Mar. 2026
Verb
But young Fraser barely grunts under the punishment, then puts his shirt back on and goes to see how Julia is doing.
—
Kimberly Roots,
TVLine,
5 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for grunts
Noun
-
The stadium, packed to the brim with more than 82,000 fans, reverberated with stunned murmurs as Morocco’s Ismael Saibari snuck behind a distracted Brazil defense and chipped home a beautiful goal over goalkeeper Alisson Becker’s head to open the scoring in the 22nd minute.
-
That absence has allowed for murmurs of doubt to seep in and create a space for a new enclave of rap fans to dismiss his music as generationally specific despite his very real track record and influence over pop culture.
Noun
-
The route also brought artisans, laborers and slaves to the Spanish colony.
-
For American diners of diverse backgrounds, chop suey struck an enticing balance between novelty and decipherability, which propelled it to national popularity even as the US government moved to exclude Chinese laborers from entering the country in 1882.
Verb
-
Your dad mutters for head movement, for cage cutting, for not playing off the back and creating distance.
Noun
-
The whispers about the 41-year-old turned louder.
-
The yin and yang found in 21 Savage’s menacing whispers over the bass and drums, derivative of Tay Keith’s style, and his stark threats over Metro Boomin’s familiar keys create atmospheric success.
Noun
-
Before every World Cup game, event workers unfurl a giant version of each country's flag on the field.
-
Progressives cite its emphasis on the dignity of work and workers, and on the need for government to regulate working conditions that threaten this dignity.
Verb
-
Both look over at me and then Lumet mumbles something and the conversation abruptly ends.
-
Meanwhile, everyone is still running around like the Keystone Kops chasing Billie, passing an old lady in a bed eating Jell-O who mumbles something in Diné.
Cite this Entry
“Grunts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/grunts. Accessed 29 Jun. 2026.
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