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
That’s particularly true when said creator has already birthed an entire cinematic universe whose characters and story lines can be milked long after Sheridan moseys along.
—
Josef Adalian, Vulture, 30 Oct. 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
Josef Adalian, Vulture, 30 Oct. 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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According to the complaint, authorities believe the same individual similarly exploited at least 26 other children using online platforms.—
Laura Romero,
ABC News,
6 Nov. 2025
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Often the updates help keep you safe by patching loopholes in previous versions of software that scammers exploited.—
Shelby Slade,
AZCentral.com,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Spoelstra used Niko Jovic essentially as the backup center.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
8 Nov. 2025
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Scott Ford, who was walking in Ault’s group, said that the new lighting system can be used yearround and programmed for seasonal and holiday displays.—
Graham Womack,
Sacbee.com,
8 Nov. 2025
Verb
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But like any power, it can be abused.—
Kelly Ehlers,
Rolling Stone,
10 Nov. 2025
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In handing down the sentence, Montenegro said Bonillo understood the scope of his misdeeds, abused his position of trust and used that position to enrich himself while undermining CBP’s main goal.—
Alex Riggins,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
8 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Activists there leveraged this wholly unanticipated outcome to accelerate the rise of an organized antislavery campaign after 1783.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Nov. 2025
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The high court’s nine justices are slated to hear 80 minutes of oral arguments about whether the Commander in Chief lawfully leveraged a 1977 trade law, the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), in implementing double-digit duties on America’s trading partners across the globe.—
Kate Nishimura,
Sourcing Journal,
5 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Even among some voters who were sincerely uncomfortable with Mamdani’s past rhetoric, many rationalized that an authentic Democrat with a pulse was still better than someone who might be manipulated from afar.—
Philip Elliott,
Time,
5 Nov. 2025
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Experts said those markets are at risk of being manipulated by foreign influence.—
Kate Plummer,
MSNBC Newsweek,
4 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Milked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/milked. Accessed 14 Nov. 2025.
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