pecked

past tense of peck
1
as in nibbled
to eat reluctantly and in small bites found out that fashion models never really eat—they just peck at small meals in expensive restaurants

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

2

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 pecked Pelicans swooped overhead and night herons, with spiky yellow feathers flying from their heads, goofily pecked the grass for insects. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 11 June 2026 As Cadeau pecked his way through the blue-and-maize confetti littering the court, Justin did a quick change. — Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 7 Apr. 2026 Standing right behind the decoy, the bird cautiously sized up George, pecked him on the head, then jumped and used his spurs to knock George to the ground. — Steve Waters, Miami Herald, 13 Mar. 2026 The muscular gizzard contains grit pecked up from the chicken’s ground feeding, which is used to crush up the chicken’s food. — Josh Miller, Southern Living, 21 Feb. 2026 The two teams faced off again on Sunday, and once again, the Birds pecked Kansas City, this time in a three-point victory. — Robert Marvi, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pecked
Verb
  • Kikuko, her appetite sluggish, nibbled the bread bit by bit from the edges, all the while furtively watching her father.
    — Cynthia Zarin, Harpers Magazine, 4 Aug. 2026
  • Threatened by the lack of water and nibbled by starving livestock, the trees that once formed a dense forest in the Somali region of Ethiopia are in danger, locals say.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 10 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • The victim had been stabbed and had her throat cut, police said.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 26 Sep. 2026
  • Doctor stabbed to death, wife critically injured after man allegedly attacks them in bed.
    — , FOXNews.com, 25 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • That notion reached its pinnacle after the Chiefs beat the Bills 32-29 in the AFC Championship Game but was punctured by their 40-22 clobbering at the hands of the Eagles in Super Bowl LIX.
    — Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 21 Sep. 2026
  • As anxiety punctured the tranquility of the suburb, questions bubbled up on everything from the community’s water and pesticide use to abandoned oil wells underneath.
    — Julia Vargas Jones, CNN Money, 20 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • In 1998, while a student at Gordonstoun, Princess Anne’s daughter Zara Tindall (née Phillips), shocked the nation by getting her tongue pierced at a tattoo parlour in Moray, Scotland.
    — Eva Wolchover, Vanity Fair, 21 Sep. 2026
  • The anticipation builds until the silence is pierced by the curling cry of the ancient instrument.
    — Ben Corn, Christian Science Monitor, 19 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Workers have been increasingly jabbed while on the job as needle-style medications — more specifically GLP-1s — have risen in popularity.
    — Amethyst Martinez, USA Today, 21 Aug. 2026
  • Liberty star Sabrina Ionescu jabbed back against the prevailing narrative yesterday, saying she was never invited to participate in the WNBA’s 3-point contest this weekend.
    — Chris Branch, New York Times, 24 July 2026
Verb
  • The Producers Lab has picked 10 up-and-coming local producers, drawn from Jakarta, West Sumatra, West Java, Central Java and Kalimantan.
    — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 23 Sep. 2026
  • The people who seemed most settled weren’t the ones who’d picked a lane early.
    — Aditi Khullar, Forbes.com, 23 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • But as a viewer, at least, watching American Horror Story feels more than ever like being stuck in some sort of hell.
    — Jen Chaney, Vulture, 26 Sep. 2026
  • If you have ever been stuck in traffic wishing your car could sprout wings, Samson Sky has been working on something pretty close.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 25 Sep. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Pecked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pecked. Accessed 29 Sep. 2026.

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