muscle 1 of 2

noun

ˈmə-səl How to pronounce muscle (audio)
Definition of musclenext
1
as in power
muscular strength I'm going to need someone with real muscle to help me move all this furniture

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in strength
the ability to exert effort for the accomplishment of a task at the time the military lacked the muscle to fight two wars at once

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

muscle

2 of 2

verb

1
as in to force
to cause (a person) to give in to pressure he was muscled out of command by his opponents at military headquarters

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to push
to force one's way muscling straight through the packed crowd of people waiting to board the ship

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of muscle
Noun
In a photo posted to her Instagram account on August 8, the mom of three showed off her toned muscles while rocking a resistance band and balancing her hands on a set of free weights. — Chanel Vargas, InStyle, 8 Aug. 2026 Mild symptoms may include fever, muscle aches, nausea, tiredness, vomiting and diarrhea. — Cindy Krischer Goodman, Sun Sentinel, 7 Aug. 2026
Verb
The streaks abruptly ended when De Ketelaere muscled past Cubarsí and headed home a cross from Timothy Castagne for Belgium’s tying goal. — ABC News, 10 July 2026 Vance also appears willing to muscle Israel into accepting whatever outcome the Iran talks deliver. — Vivian Salama, The Atlantic, 27 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for muscle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for muscle
  1. power
  2. strength
  3. force
  4. push
  5. beef
  6. energy
  7. coerce
  8. squeeze
Noun
  • His brand shone as a symbol of national pride and soft power.
    — Rhea Mogul, CNN Money, 9 Aug. 2026
  • Damianos also hailed the entry of French investment company Meridiam as a backer to the Great Seas Interconnector project, an electricity cable that will connect Europe’s power grid with that of Cyprus and eventually Israel.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 9 Aug. 2026
Definition of power
Noun
  • Loss of muscle strength, medication side effects, neurological conditions, and changes in vision or balance can all affect gait.
    — Katia Hetter, CNN Money, 14 Aug. 2026
  • Guest judge Willy Chavarria praises how Jeffrey’s outfit moved (my favorite thing about it), but the strength of Naheim’s tromp l’oeil effect snags him the win, immunity for the next challenge, and $20,000 from Viva.
    — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of strength
Verb
  • The exact timetable for his recovery isn’t known; the injury will force him out of at least a portion of the regular season.
    — Nicki Jhabvala, New York Times, 9 Aug. 2026
  • While Homer followed warriors sailing home from Troy, the playwright Euripides — writing some three centuries later — turned to the city’s ruins and its women, forced into exile and enslavement.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 9 Aug. 2026
Definition of force
Verb
  • Millard expects to push that number to about 200,000 with improvements to the company’s methods and some additional infrastructure.
    — Justin Birnbaum, Sportico.com, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Forbes contributor David Phelan highlights contrasting reports that the iPhone Ultra is either on course for a full release or will be either restricted at launch or pushed back into October.
    — Ewan Spence, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of push
Noun
  • The number of beef cows is at historic lows for the midyear mark, and the calf crop for 2026 is projected to be down another 2% from last year’s multidecade lows, per the National Agricultural Statistics Service’s cattle report released last month.
    — Claire Malon, Chicago Tribune, 14 Aug. 2026
  • Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller is demanding answers after the recent recall of nearly 30,000 pounds of raw beef from Argentina.
    — S.E. Jenkins, CBS News, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of beef
Noun
  • Many agree that the surge in data centers, not Illinois clean energy law, is the primary cause of skyrocketing power prices across power grid operator PJM’s 13-state footprint.
    — Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 13 Aug. 2026
  • Defensiveness extends conversations, weakens credibility and drains emotional energy that could have been directed toward solving problems.
    — Rodger Dean Duncan, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of energy
Verb
  • Group members will often blackmail victims by threatening to make swatting calls at their home address and have also been known to coerce minors into placing swatting calls themselves.
    — Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 8 Aug. 2026
  • Jawad Boulos, who was Sarsour's lawyer when he was charged in Israel decades ago, testified that Sarsour was tortured in Israeli custody and coerced into making confessions.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of coerce
Verb
  • Cheap electric cars dominate one end of the market, Tesla occupies the premium end, and the middle is getting squeezed.
    — Jon Markman, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2026
  • Washington is trying to choke Iran's ability to get its crude out while Tehran is squeezing the artery through which everybody else's crude gets through.
    — Frank Andrews, CBS News, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of squeeze

Browse Nearby Words

murrains
muscle
muscle-bound
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Cite this Entry

“Muscle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/muscle. Accessed 15 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on muscle

Nglish: Translation of muscle for Spanish Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about muscle

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