1
as in to congratulate
to express to (someone) admiration for his or her success or good fortune
she hugged herself for having made a killing on the investment
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to clasp
to put one's arms around and press tightly
Grandma hugged the grandchildren good-bye
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of hug
Erin Jensen, USA Today, 16 Mar. 2026
That's the case with Italy's Tropea Beach, which sits in the southern part of the country's Calabria region more than 200 miles south of Naples with a coastline hugging the pristine Tyrrhenian Sea.
—Kristine Hansen, Travel + Leisure, 16 Mar. 2026
Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 13 Mar. 2026
Kehlani, a wildly successful singer-songwriter from Oakland (and OSA alum), sang one of her hits, punctuated by a hug and selfie with Liu.
—Ron Kroichick, San Francisco Chronicle, 12 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for hug
Verb
Dressing a bump can be tricky, but Mosaku shines in the Louis Vuitton sequin gown that hugs her curves.
—Erin Jensen, USA Today, 16 Mar. 2026
That's the case with Italy's Tropea Beach, which sits in the southern part of the country's Calabria region more than 200 miles south of Naples with a coastline hugging the pristine Tyrrhenian Sea.
—Kristine Hansen, Travel + Leisure, 16 Mar. 2026
Noun
After the scene, Noah and I gave each other a hug because that was kind of awful.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 13 Mar. 2026
Kehlani, a wildly successful singer-songwriter from Oakland (and OSA alum), sang one of her hits, punctuated by a hug and selfie with Liu.
—Ron Kroichick, San Francisco Chronicle, 12 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for hug
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hug
Verb
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Buffett is known to personally congratulate the winners.—
Jacqueline Munis,
Fortune,
23 Mar. 2026
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That 8-2 aggregate defeat by Paris Saint-Germain should be a wake-up-and-smell-the-coffee moment for those owners and executives who have spent the past few years congratulating themselves on a recruitment strategy that increasingly has the look of a social experiment.—
Oliver Kay,
New York Times,
21 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Others showed baby Spero clasping his tiny hand around Graham's finger and slumbering with a smile on his face.—
Ryan Coleman,
Entertainment Weekly,
13 Mar. 2026
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Back at the gathering, there were Martha’s groans and Gretchen’s anger, and there was Mike, clasping his chest—a heart attack?—
Yiyun Li,
New Yorker,
1 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The visit, which aimed to strengthen economic and technological ties between the two countries, underscored a shift in Israel-India relations under Modi, whose embrace of Israel marks a departure from India’s foreign policy that has historically supported the Palestinians.—
Nick Vivarelli,
Variety,
19 Mar. 2026
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Over the course of an hour, Niontay opens up about his relationship with his family, his affinity for wordplay, and his embrace of Blackness in his music.—
Olivier Lafontant,
Pitchfork,
19 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Cliff swallows make nests out of mud pellets that cling to overhangs.—
Kurt Snibbe,
Oc Register,
21 Mar. 2026
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Loznitsa neither sentimentalizes nor mocks this impulse; for him, the human will to resist, to cling fast to integrity and courage in the face of a mounting totalitarian horror, is something as real, as undeniable, and therefore worth acknowledging, as the horror itself.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
20 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The team could have stuck him and his high-octane stuff in a bullpen that has a few spots up for grabs, but the preference is for Lagrange to continue his development as a starter for now.—
Gary Phillips,
New York Daily News,
22 Mar. 2026
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The Red Sox are still deciding who will round out the Opening Day bullpen, and multiple spots are up for grabs.—
Gabrielle Starr,
Boston Herald,
21 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Cushion Valuables When Moving There's nothing better to cradle your breakable goods when moving or packing items for storage than a pillow.—
Mary Marlowe Leverette,
The Spruce,
16 Jan. 2026
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All Fox could do was cradle Truman’s hand, stare straight ahead, summon a proud mournful dignity, and try to pretend that the people all around them did not exist.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
12 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Hug.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hug. Accessed 24 Mar. 2026.
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