as in squeezing
to rob by the use of trickery or threats
when the guy failed to return with our money, we realized that we had been hosed
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Recent Examples of hosing
On the night of April 21, Toronto fire crews called time on the stunt, blocking access to the sculpture and hosing it down with warm water, Toronto City News reports.
—
Alex Suskind, Pitchfork, 21 Apr. 2026
Bagging up trash tightly and hosing out dirty trash cans can also help.
—Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 10 Apr. 2026
As buses loaded with evacuees pulled onto the road, members of the skeleton crew started gathering their belongings and hosing down buildings.
—New York Times, 16 Mar. 2026
Residents were prohibited from watering their lawns or hosing down their cars; industrial operations, largely exempt from drought restrictions, kept drawing the water they had been promised.
—Rachel Monroe, New Yorker, 13 Nov. 2025
Drone footage shows crews hosing down a smoking pile of materials that caught fire at a northeastern Massachusetts recycling plant.
—Saleen Martin, USA Today, 29 Aug. 2025
The video — which name-drops the Euphoria star — sees Lizzo hosing down a Porsche while clad in torn denim.
—Shania Russell, EW.com, 7 Aug. 2025
Alex Suskind, Pitchfork, 21 Apr. 2026
Bagging up trash tightly and hosing out dirty trash cans can also help.
—Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 10 Apr. 2026
As buses loaded with evacuees pulled onto the road, members of the skeleton crew started gathering their belongings and hosing down buildings.
—New York Times, 16 Mar. 2026
Residents were prohibited from watering their lawns or hosing down their cars; industrial operations, largely exempt from drought restrictions, kept drawing the water they had been promised.
—Rachel Monroe, New Yorker, 13 Nov. 2025
Drone footage shows crews hosing down a smoking pile of materials that caught fire at a northeastern Massachusetts recycling plant.
—Saleen Martin, USA Today, 29 Aug. 2025
The video — which name-drops the Euphoria star — sees Lizzo hosing down a Porsche while clad in torn denim.
—Shania Russell, EW.com, 7 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hosing
Verb
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From truckers to commuters, gasoline prices are squeezing budgets across the country.—
Jessica Guynn,
USA Today,
29 Apr. 2026
-
The university is scheduled to replace the turf in July, squeezing into a tight window of summer events.—
Shaun Goodwin,
Idaho Statesman,
29 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Captain Ethan Ampadu is one of the survivors of that stinging 2024 play-off final defeat.—
Beren Cross,
New York Times,
25 Apr. 2026
-
Trump was the butt of several stinging jokes made by both President Barack Obama and comedian Seth Meyers.—
Brian Stelter,
CNN Money,
24 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
For some, working with soil evokes nostalgia for childhood summers, smelling thorny roses in bloom and plucking ripe tomatoes off the vine.—
Nicole Kliest,
Vogue,
20 Apr. 2026
-
Brawley hires football coach After a months-long search, Brawley High School has hired a football coach, plucking Rick Stewart away from Calipatria.—
John Maffei,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
9 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Over the past few years, Google has been hustling to reinvent its business for the AI age, trying to keep consumers in the habit of going to its search page as chatbots from startups such as OpenAI and Anthropic become more popular.—
Bloomberg,
Mercury News,
29 Apr. 2026
-
An agent is seen grabbing Vance by his jacket and hustling him off stage.—
Bill Hutchinson,
ABC News,
28 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Finally, the professional will install hangers to reinforce your gutters before screwing the mesh guard on top.—
Faith Wakefield,
USA Today,
4 May 2026
-
Remove the shower head by screwing it off counterclockwise.—
Hallie Milstein,
Southern Living,
20 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Fred, their oldest surviving child, was suspended from Princeton for cheating, then caught embezzling from his Seattle employer to feed, Church suspected, a gambling habit.—
Sebastian Smee,
New Yorker,
4 May 2026
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Court documents state the Matthews were there to get the children after a fight between Ashley and Pouncey over cheating.—
Meredith Colias-Pete,
Chicago Tribune,
3 May 2026
Verb
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At one point, Davies can be seen sticking her head out of the open window and waving to park officials below.—
Natalia Senanayake,
PEOPLE,
24 Apr. 2026
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For most of her first two seasons, the league treated her like just another player, sticking her on the back of posters and leaving her out of promos.—
Bobby Burack OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
22 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The sun was beating down on me.—
Jennifer Wilson,
New Yorker,
4 May 2026
-
The Wild’s penalty-killers pounced, starting a rush the other way that ended with Marcus Foligno beating Scott Wedgewood for a 5-4 Wild lead — Minnesota’s third straight goal and its third of the period.—
Sean Keeler,
Denver Post,
4 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Hosing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hosing. Accessed 5 May. 2026.
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