as in exploited
to take unfair advantage of
unscrupulous people trying to milk the welfare system for all it's worth
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Recent Examples of milked
Netflix has milked so much out of that now-instantly recognizable sound.
—
Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 6 Nov. 2025
Monster has, itself, been the target of criticism from people like the Menendezes and the families of Dahmer’s victims, who feel their traumas have been milked for sensation rather than sublimated into high art.
—Judy Berman, Time, 6 Oct. 2025
That’s when cows need to be milked next; if no one’s there, a cow could start to leak milk, to develop an infection.
—Emma Hinchliffe, Fortune, 3 Oct. 2025
Host Jimmy Kimmel milked the moment, delaying confirming that their answer was correct for a very tense minute.
—Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 26 Sep. 2025
Games don’t feel milked, overanalyzed, or — as can often be the case with Generation Kickstarter — overtly romanticized.
—Matt Gardner, Forbes.com, 20 Aug. 2025
For a while, the Klussendorfs milked their cows on a neighboring farm that had been empty for years.
—Rick Barrett, jsonline.com, 11 Aug. 2025
But strangely, when the researchers milked the well cows with contaminated equipment—the way the virus was assumed to be spreading on farms—the healthy cows did not fall ill.
—Stephanie Pappas, Scientific American, 5 Aug. 2025
Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 6 Nov. 2025
Monster has, itself, been the target of criticism from people like the Menendezes and the families of Dahmer’s victims, who feel their traumas have been milked for sensation rather than sublimated into high art.
—Judy Berman, Time, 6 Oct. 2025
That’s when cows need to be milked next; if no one’s there, a cow could start to leak milk, to develop an infection.
—Emma Hinchliffe, Fortune, 3 Oct. 2025
Host Jimmy Kimmel milked the moment, delaying confirming that their answer was correct for a very tense minute.
—Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 26 Sep. 2025
Games don’t feel milked, overanalyzed, or — as can often be the case with Generation Kickstarter — overtly romanticized.
—Matt Gardner, Forbes.com, 20 Aug. 2025
For a while, the Klussendorfs milked their cows on a neighboring farm that had been empty for years.
—Rick Barrett, jsonline.com, 11 Aug. 2025
But strangely, when the researchers milked the well cows with contaminated equipment—the way the virus was assumed to be spreading on farms—the healthy cows did not fall ill.
—Stephanie Pappas, Scientific American, 5 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for milked
Verb
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All three of his passing touchdowns exploited either a safety or linebacker, per Next Gen Stats.—
Jourdan Rodrigue,
New York Times,
11 Jan. 2026
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Not as freaks to be studied from afar, mimicked, and exploited for other people’s creative whims or amusement, but as complex and whole parts of the world worth exploring and celebrating.—
Sarah Kurchak,
Time,
9 Jan. 2026
Verb
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However, Corbett was used as a utility fill-in starter at left guard, center and right guard for the remainder of the season.—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
11 Jan. 2026
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Elisa, a Concord resident who asked that her last name not be used, said the incident reflects a broader sense of fear within communities.—
Da Lin,
CBS News,
11 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The suit alleges that Ham abused her repeatedly over a number of years, and that defendants knew of the abuse, but instead chose to prioritize reputational and financial interests over her safety.—
Rachel DeSantis,
PEOPLE,
7 Jan. 2026
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Canty, a former special agent in charge of the SBI’s Charlotte region office, resigned from the Mecklenburg Sheriff’s Office in November 2024 and issued a letter then alleging that McFadden abused his powers.—
Ryan Oehrli,
Charlotte Observer,
6 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Grok Imagine offers a Black Mirror-esque window into how AI can be leveraged for harm, and yet, as so often feels the case, never-out-the-news tech baron Musk powers on stronger than ever.—
Max Goldbart,
Deadline,
9 Jan. 2026
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This ability was leveraged by scientists in 2016 to image a previously undiscovered corridor in the Great Pyramid of Giza.—
Chris Young,
Interesting Engineering,
8 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Freedom from fear mattered because frightened societies are easily manipulated.—
Philip Martin,
Washington Post,
7 Jan. 2026
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In some cases, CBS News ran images through AI detection tools, which can be inconsistent or inaccurate but can still help flag possibly manipulated content.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
6 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Milked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/milked. Accessed 12 Jan. 2026.
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