as in to labor
to devote serious and sustained effort
the writer pegged away at his first novel for three years before he felt that it was ready to be published
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for peg (away)
Verb
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Lahmeyer, the Oklahoma pastor, said pastors and Christian leaders often labor under the burden of expectations.—
John Blake,
CNN Money,
8 Jan. 2026 -
The team labored in home losses to Houston and the Los Angeles Chargers, with Mahomes ultimately suffering a season-ending ACL injury in the fourth quarter of that setback against the Chargers.—
Jesse Newell,
New York Times,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
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His strength on defense was particularly impressive for a freshman, as TCU big men Xavier Edmonds and David Punch struggled to create good looks inside the lane thanks in large part to the defense of Peat.—
Steven Johnson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
11 Jan. 2026
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Players throughout the Heat’s rotation struggled to make shots.—
Anthony Chiang,
Miami Herald,
11 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Mike, played by a rangy, companionable Hugh Jackman, is a striving singer in Milwaukee who has battled the bottle, cannot consistently pay his mortgage, and keeps himself going by appearing at the state fair dressed up to look (and sound) like Don Ho.—
Peter Tonguette,
The Washington Examiner,
9 Jan. 2026
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Everybody loves putting on those Nora Efron classics, and the filmmakers here were striving to make something that was a modern answer to those that was in discussion with When Harry Met Sally and those greats.—
Nicole Fell,
HollywoodReporter,
9 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The company was also working with Transport for London on a double-decker electric bus, but the agency has yet to place an order.—
Andrew Nusca,
Fortune,
10 Nov. 2025
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On Friday night the Supreme Court granted the request to block full SNAP payments as the case works its way through the courts.—
Nicole Nixon,
Sacbee.com,
10 Nov. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Peg (away).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/peg%20%28away%29. Accessed 11 Jan. 2026.
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