1
as in to debate
to give serious and careful thought to
the board spent the afternoon kicking around the feasibility of opening an overseas office
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to play
to spend time in aimless activity
I really can't do much but kick around at work until I get the rest of the submissions
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to kill time
to spend time doing nothing
spent the afternoon kicking around, while his wife bought out the mall
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in to roam
to move about from place to place aimlessly
after spending a year in Europe kicking around, the backpacker was ready to return home
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5
as in to abuse
to inflict physical or emotional harm upon
children who were raised by an alcoholic father who regularly kicked them around
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of kick around
The idea of seriously designing an expedition to put astronauts on Mars has been kicking around for well over 70 years and is taken very seriously in certain quarters today.
—
David Szondy
july 21, New Atlas, 21 July 2025
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, while certainly no fan of Hezbollah, also doesn't want to be seen as getting kicked around by the Israelis and has a domestic political incentive to not roll over in negotiations.
—Daniel R. Depetris, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 July 2025
In the event of an attack, poke at its eyes, and punch and kick around its face and head.
—Diamond Walker, USA Today, 29 Apr. 2025
The best case scenario would probably be if Congress reasserts its authority over trade through some of the bills that are kicking around on Capitol Hill.
—Lauren Hirsch, New York Times, 12 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for kick around
David Szondy
july 21, New Atlas, 21 July 2025
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, while certainly no fan of Hezbollah, also doesn't want to be seen as getting kicked around by the Israelis and has a domestic political incentive to not roll over in negotiations.
—Daniel R. Depetris, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 July 2025
In the event of an attack, poke at its eyes, and punch and kick around its face and head.
—Diamond Walker, USA Today, 29 Apr. 2025
The best case scenario would probably be if Congress reasserts its authority over trade through some of the bills that are kicking around on Capitol Hill.
—Lauren Hirsch, New York Times, 12 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for kick around
Recent Examples of Synonyms for kick around
Verb
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Even the assassination of political figures is not the same thing as just being shot in the throat for the crime of debating issues in the public square.—
J. Kim Murphy,
Variety,
13 Sep. 2025
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As the Fed debates its next move, remember that Warren Buffett isn’t trying to guess tomorrow’s stock chart.—
Robert Daugherty,
Forbes.com,
13 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Fashion and sociology experts say that, when examining the significance of any bold fashion statement such as Robbie's, context plays an important role.—
Charles Trepany,
USA Today,
13 Sep. 2025
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The Yankees played an integral part in the remembrance of 9/11.—
Ross O'Keefe,
The Washington Examiner,
12 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Colorful murals adorn the interior, with communal tables and high ceilings, and the outdoors has beer-keg tables and heat lamps and lots of room for patrons — and their dogs — to roam.—
John Metcalfe,
Mercury News,
13 Sep. 2025
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His beam wavered on a patch of blankness, or the corner of an amp, and then began to roam the stage in desperation, scanning here and scanning there—until, from the darkness, the voice of Bruce Dickinson, Iron Maiden’s singer, was heard.—
James Parker,
The Atlantic,
12 Sep. 2025
Verb
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More importantly, Penske also describes this dynamic as antitrust behavior from a company abusing what the federal government has already described as Google’s monopoly status in the realm of Internet search.—
Andy Meek,
Forbes.com,
15 Sep. 2025
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The biggest Flock controversy centers on allegations that law enforcement has abused the company’s surveillance network to target women, immigrants, and people engaging in legal activity outside their home states.—
Jennifer Jolly,
USA Today,
14 Sep. 2025
Verb
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But Lecornu has run into some controversy in the past for entertaining far-right leader Marine Le Pen at a secret dinner to discuss Ukraine last year.—
Miranda Jeyaretnam,
Time,
10 Sep. 2025
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Alongside the rise of YouTube Golf, a number of entertaining golf podcasts now exist — so this threesome has their work cut out for them.—
Tony Maglio,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Gisin hopes that by fooling around with measurements of these more exotic states, physicists will come to better understand the role of measurement in general.—
Quanta Magazine,
Quanta Magazine,
8 Aug. 2025
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Those have come from two players: Adrian Morejon of the San Diego Padres, who throws an odd knuckleball-changeup hybrid about 1 percent of the time, and Jonah Bride of the Minnesota Twins, an infielder fooling around with the knuckler in blowouts.—
Cody Stavenhagen,
New York Times,
19 June 2025
Verb
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Her task now is simply to wander, wait and listen.—
Ari Daniel,
NPR,
10 Sep. 2025
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Despite its common name, this creature wasn’t simply a lion that wandered into the Americas.—
Scott Travers,
Forbes.com,
10 Sep. 2025
Verb
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While vocal over the years about his aversion to sell, take on a business partner or publicly list the company, rumors about Armani contemplating forming a foundation first emerged in 2012.—
Luisa Zargani,
Footwear News,
12 Sep. 2025
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Conducting compensation negotiations with a team is only one of relevant services contemplated by the SPAC.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
12 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Kick around.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/kick%20around. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.
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