1
as in kisses
to pass lightly across or touch gently especially in passing
accidentally nudged me as they squeezed past
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in urges
to try to persuade (someone) through earnest appeals to follow a course of action
the car salesman nudged me into taking a test-drive, even though I had said that I was just looking
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of nudges
Gretchen Wittenmyer-Stone, Miami Herald, 9 June 2026
Even her mother, touchingly, nudges Suzanna from the nest, refusing for her daughter’s sake to cling to their weekly routine.
—Julius Taranto, The Atlantic, 1 June 2026
Stelo, Lingo and Levels each promise to turn real-time glucose data into something useful — whether that’s tighter diabetes management or a clearer picture of how breakfast, stress or a bad night of sleep nudges your metabolism.
—Samantha Agate, Sacbee.com, 27 May 2026
The hormone, in turn, nudges the brain back toward waking once the night’s repair work is done.
—Allison Palmer, Kansas City Star, 6 May 2026
As Benson continues asking questions about the victim, Jasmyn nudges a sign that shows her prices for autographs and pictures and says that her time is valuable.
—Selome Hailu, Variety, 24 Apr. 2026
Doing so activates the vagus nerve and nudges the nervous system from fight-or-flight back toward rest.
—Angela Haupt, Time, 10 Apr. 2026
Team priorities could collide as the concerned Moon in your 11th House of Aspirations nudges reckless Mars in your 5th House of Risks.
—Tarot.com, New York Daily News, 31 Mar. 2026
This perspective helps explain why small changes in choice environments – nudges such as placing salad bars directly in cafeteria serving lines or listing vegetarian options first on menus – can significantly shift behavior without forcing anyone to choose differently.
—Alejandro Hortal-Sánchez, The Conversation, 24 Mar. 2026
Verb
The app reads flights and stays, checks ahead, then nudges travelers toward choices that may save them from last‑minute airport purchases or an overstuffed suitcase filled with the wrong gear.
—Gretchen Wittenmyer-Stone, Miami Herald, 9 June 2026
Even her mother, touchingly, nudges Suzanna from the nest, refusing for her daughter’s sake to cling to their weekly routine.
—Julius Taranto, The Atlantic, 1 June 2026
Stelo, Lingo and Levels each promise to turn real-time glucose data into something useful — whether that’s tighter diabetes management or a clearer picture of how breakfast, stress or a bad night of sleep nudges your metabolism.
—Samantha Agate, Sacbee.com, 27 May 2026
The hormone, in turn, nudges the brain back toward waking once the night’s repair work is done.
—Allison Palmer, Kansas City Star, 6 May 2026
As Benson continues asking questions about the victim, Jasmyn nudges a sign that shows her prices for autographs and pictures and says that her time is valuable.
—Selome Hailu, Variety, 24 Apr. 2026
Doing so activates the vagus nerve and nudges the nervous system from fight-or-flight back toward rest.
—Angela Haupt, Time, 10 Apr. 2026
Team priorities could collide as the concerned Moon in your 11th House of Aspirations nudges reckless Mars in your 5th House of Risks.
—Tarot.com, New York Daily News, 31 Mar. 2026
This perspective helps explain why small changes in choice environments – nudges such as placing salad bars directly in cafeteria serving lines or listing vegetarian options first on menus – can significantly shift behavior without forcing anyone to choose differently.
—Alejandro Hortal-Sánchez, The Conversation, 24 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nudges
Verb
-
Everyone offers their name and kisses everyone else, and women scrape their lipstick off other people’s cheeks.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
8 June 2026
-
Sofia Carson blows kisses to the camera during the amfAR Gala Cannes 2026 at Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc on May 21.—
People Staff,
PEOPLE,
25 May 2026
Verb
-
The Bay Area Host Committee urges drivers to plan for extra time and heavy congestion before and after matches.—
Tim Fang,
CBS News,
8 June 2026
-
The city urges residents to report coyote sightings by calling 3-1-1 or making a report online.—
Charlotte Phillipp,
PEOPLE,
7 June 2026
Noun
-
Which makes even Monday’s subtle pushes for better coordination with Israel very notable, given the usual lack of daylight between the GOP and Netanyahu.—
Burgess Everett,
semafor.com,
8 June 2026
-
Republicans in Kansas and Democrats in Illinois both rebuffed party pushes to take up redistricting.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
3 June 2026
Verb
-
Bryce Harper, star slugger, the Phillie Phanatic's best friend, and baseball hero to children of all ages, brushes his teeth.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
28 May 2026
-
These stocks have climbed for weeks as the market brushes off the narrative that AI is a threat to the cybersecurity industry.—
Morgan Chittum,Matthew J. Belvedere,
CNBC,
27 May 2026
Verb
-
Each line encourages a body to shift when uttered or even when read silently to oneself.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
29 May 2026
-
To her daughter, 8-year-old Hazel (Nola Wallace), Paula is the fun parent, a mom who encourages ice cream for dinner, embraces cursing, enthusiastically participates in TikTok dances, and even coaches her daughter’s youth soccer team.—
Erin Qualey,
Vulture,
29 May 2026
Noun
-
To relitigate the matter on behalf of Musk only served to underline the conviction that all of these jerks deserved one another.—
Gideon Lewis-Kraus,
New Yorker,
20 May 2026
-
Here, witches are real — and so are jerks.—
Amy Nicholson,
Los Angeles Times,
30 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The storyline parallels government cover-up narratives from the past (Pentagon Papers/Watergate) and today (Epstein Files), and touches on our current dehumanizing immigration policies.—
Randy Myers,
Mercury News,
9 June 2026
-
The research touches on the term benchmaxing, which is the practice of inflating AI benchmark scores not through better models, but through better server configurations.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
8 June 2026
Noun
-
The Crusaders, who claimed a SoCal-record third regional title, racked up 14 hits but Payne worked out of several jams.—
Dan Albano,
Oc Register,
7 June 2026
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Barton recommends using them in recipes like jams, jellies, preserves, and smoothies where their softer texture won't be an issue.—
Alana Al-Hatlani,
Southern Living,
6 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Nudges.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nudges. Accessed 12 Jun. 2026.
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