variants
also peck order
as in hierarchy
the way in which people or things in a group or organization are placed in a series of levels with different importance or status
As an assistant manager, he was pretty low in the company's pecking order.
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pecking order
The first is the onset of new regulations in 2026, which will reset the pecking order.
—
Sahil Kapur, NBC News, 14 Mar. 2025
Advertisement Advertisement In the natural pecking order of things, friendships can become lackluster.
—Priya Vulchi, Time, 9 Apr. 2025
As a college freshman, coming back from a biceps injury that had wiped out his last high school season, Will was stuck at the back of the Bulldogs pitching pecking order.
—Stephen J. Nesbitt, New York Times, 27 Mar. 2025
Sometimes a hen gets picked on by the others and has to be coaxed back into the pecking order.
—Tove Danovich, The Atlantic, 7 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pecking order
Sahil Kapur, NBC News, 14 Mar. 2025
Advertisement Advertisement In the natural pecking order of things, friendships can become lackluster.
—Priya Vulchi, Time, 9 Apr. 2025
As a college freshman, coming back from a biceps injury that had wiped out his last high school season, Will was stuck at the back of the Bulldogs pitching pecking order.
—Stephen J. Nesbitt, New York Times, 27 Mar. 2025
Sometimes a hen gets picked on by the others and has to be coaxed back into the pecking order.
—Tove Danovich, The Atlantic, 7 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pecking order
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pecking order
Noun
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However, New Zealand’s status atop the OFC hierarchy since Australia joined the Asian Football Confederation in 2006 meant that completing the qualification process was a simple act of meeting expectations.—
Jeff Rueter,
New York Times,
14 Apr. 2025
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The idea is to implement its data throughout the organization, including with a chief soccer officer, should Sporting ultimately elect to attempt to hire one to sit atop the roster hierarchy.—
Sam McDowell,
Kansas City Star,
13 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Ellison improved his ranking by one from No. 5 in 2024, while Page vaulted three places from No. 10 and Brin jumped three positions from No. 11.—
Sarah Linn,
Sacbee.com,
24 Apr. 2025
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Nice sit 63rd in the ELO rankings — a measure of team strength that allocates points for every result, weighted by the quality of opposition faced — ahead of Galatasaray and level with Freiburg.—
Charlotte Harpur,
New York Times,
24 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Pecking order.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pecking%20order. Accessed 2 May. 2025.
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