as in choice
the act or process of selecting
the picking of new recruits went on for three days
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in harvesting
to catch or collect (a crop or natural resource) for human use
pick peas and beans from the garden for dinner
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in selecting
to decide to accept (someone or something) from a group of possibilities
I pick you as my partner
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in provoking
to bring (something volatile or intense) into being
he seems to be trying to pick a fight
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in nibbling
to eat reluctantly and in small bites
still suffering from the shock of his wife's death, he could do no more than pick halfheartedly at his food
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
as in stabbing
to penetrate or hold (something) with a pointed object
continued to pick the block of ice until she was able to extract the shrimp
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of picking
Alli Forde, Travel + Leisure, 6 Nov. 2025
Team it with ballet flats or sneakers for a casual day of apple-picking or tailgating this season, or dress it up with tights and boots for holiday celebrations and other special occasions.
—Clara McMahon, PEOPLE, 29 Oct. 2025
Because fall has the right conditions for pumpkin picking, the season will keep its hold on pumpkin spice flavor, and consumers will continue to eagerly await its return each year.
—Shelley Mitchell, The Conversation, 24 Oct. 2025
Highlights include pumpkin picking, petting zoo, hayride, rock wall, apple cannons and facepainting on weekends along with Julian Food Truck and gift sop.
—Abby Hamblin, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 Oct. 2025
Suddenly, Harner and her delicate voice and intricate acoustic finger picking had a small army of fans.
—Jed Gottlieb, Boston Herald, 18 Oct. 2025
As the realities of Dunbar’s medical needs and situation became public, the Fight Night actor’s lawyers were backed into a corner over their client’s cherry picking of CUW’s beliefs.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 17 Oct. 2025
Now that's a deal ripe for the picking!
—PC Magazine, 17 Oct. 2025
Jeez, 2017 might have been my last season picking winners.
—Vic Tafur, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2025
Jon Allsop, New Yorker, 11 Nov. 2025
Kellenberger pivoted, hiking north until the winter weather hit, and picking back up in March 2025.
—The Washington Post, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Nov. 2025
While the Packers are at home, most people seem to be picking the Eagles to win this game.
—Matthew Schmidt, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Nov. 2025
And thus, the notion of picking the 25 best players of the first quarter-century seems a fool’s errand, an unwieldy challenge.
—The Athletic Nba Staff, New York Times, 10 Nov. 2025
Set in a cotton-farming village in Sudan, the film follows Nafisa, who lives a simple life, picking cotton and learning from her grandmother.
—Zac Ntim, Deadline, 9 Nov. 2025
The impact of losing enhanced premium subsidies The political fight around enhanced subsidies, which were enacted in 2021 under the Biden administration, is playing out during the ACA marketplace's open enrollment, when would-be enrollees are picking their health plans for 2026.
—Greg Iacurci, CNBC, 8 Nov. 2025
On October 25, the 58-year-old received a call from neighbors that his mother-in-law had been detained by Israeli soldiers while picking olives in the village of Nahalin in Bethlehem.
—Zeena Saifi, CNN Money, 7 Nov. 2025
Concerned that Barack Obama was running away with the race, John McCain made an impulsive gamble, boldly picking the largely unknown Alaska governor Sarah Palin.
—Time, 3 Nov. 2025
Noun
Places to Visit Moreton Island A 75-minute ferry from Brisbane, Moreton is the world’s third-largest sand island—a playground of turquoise lagoons, rolling dunes, and off-grid adventures for the picking.
—Alli Forde, Travel + Leisure, 6 Nov. 2025
Team it with ballet flats or sneakers for a casual day of apple-picking or tailgating this season, or dress it up with tights and boots for holiday celebrations and other special occasions.
—Clara McMahon, PEOPLE, 29 Oct. 2025
Because fall has the right conditions for pumpkin picking, the season will keep its hold on pumpkin spice flavor, and consumers will continue to eagerly await its return each year.
—Shelley Mitchell, The Conversation, 24 Oct. 2025
Highlights include pumpkin picking, petting zoo, hayride, rock wall, apple cannons and facepainting on weekends along with Julian Food Truck and gift sop.
—Abby Hamblin, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 Oct. 2025
Suddenly, Harner and her delicate voice and intricate acoustic finger picking had a small army of fans.
—Jed Gottlieb, Boston Herald, 18 Oct. 2025
As the realities of Dunbar’s medical needs and situation became public, the Fight Night actor’s lawyers were backed into a corner over their client’s cherry picking of CUW’s beliefs.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 17 Oct. 2025
Now that's a deal ripe for the picking!
—PC Magazine, 17 Oct. 2025
Jeez, 2017 might have been my last season picking winners.
—Vic Tafur, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2025
Verb
Trump did get the jitters, but responded, as The Atlantic’s Jonathan Chait noted, not by caving on health care but by ranting about the filibuster, ultimately picking a different way of doubling down.
—Jon Allsop, New Yorker, 11 Nov. 2025
Kellenberger pivoted, hiking north until the winter weather hit, and picking back up in March 2025.
—The Washington Post, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Nov. 2025
While the Packers are at home, most people seem to be picking the Eagles to win this game.
—Matthew Schmidt, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Nov. 2025
And thus, the notion of picking the 25 best players of the first quarter-century seems a fool’s errand, an unwieldy challenge.
—The Athletic Nba Staff, New York Times, 10 Nov. 2025
Set in a cotton-farming village in Sudan, the film follows Nafisa, who lives a simple life, picking cotton and learning from her grandmother.
—Zac Ntim, Deadline, 9 Nov. 2025
The impact of losing enhanced premium subsidies The political fight around enhanced subsidies, which were enacted in 2021 under the Biden administration, is playing out during the ACA marketplace's open enrollment, when would-be enrollees are picking their health plans for 2026.
—Greg Iacurci, CNBC, 8 Nov. 2025
On October 25, the 58-year-old received a call from neighbors that his mother-in-law had been detained by Israeli soldiers while picking olives in the village of Nahalin in Bethlehem.
—Zeena Saifi, CNN Money, 7 Nov. 2025
Concerned that Barack Obama was running away with the race, John McCain made an impulsive gamble, boldly picking the largely unknown Alaska governor Sarah Palin.
—Time, 3 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for picking
Noun
-
The best heroes are beloved because their choices — admirable, messy, or otherwise — are hard ones made in service of something greater.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
7 Nov. 2025
-
The two were impeccably dressed as Gomez and Morticia Addams, which is a canonically Gay couple costume choice — Lakshmi, as Morticia, was holding scissors in one of the posts, for crying out loud.—
James Factora,
Them.,
7 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
Each affords particular outlets for decompressing and harvesting the stressors of high-capacity jobs.—
Essence,
Essence,
7 Nov. 2025
-
Soybean farmers in states like Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota and Indiana have been harvesting this fall without purchase orders from China, once the largest buyer of American soybeans.—
John Liu,
CNN Money,
27 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
According to researchers at Penn State’s Materials Research Institute, the characteristics of nanotubes can be precisely tuned by selecting specific atomic compositions.—
Jijo Malayil,
Interesting Engineering,
9 Nov. 2025
-
Get the most from your investment by selecting trees that provide year-round beauty.—
Kim Toscano,
Southern Living,
9 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
At best, all of his perhapses and could have beens will lead to unexpected, thought-provoking conclusions.—
Isaac Butler,
The Atlantic,
3 Nov. 2025
-
This is an installment of The Nightcrawler, a weekly collection of thought-provoking articles on tech, innovation, and long-term investing by Eric Markowitz of Nightview Capital.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
30 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Even shoppers nibbling on a slice of pizza seemed to be mocking him.—
Jeff Pearlman,
Rolling Stone,
17 Oct. 2025
-
But now social media is eating media-media’s lunch, nibbling into time that used to be spent watching TV and movies, particularly for younger generations, and refashioning itself less as a network and more as a broadcaster.—
Julie Beck,
The Atlantic,
16 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
The trail through this passage is narrow and lined with signature desert plants — which is to say my path became a gauntlet of tiny, stabbing swords.—
Joan Meiners,
AZCentral.com,
10 Nov. 2025
-
Jared Luecke, 33, is facing murder and tampering with evidence charges and is accused of repeatedly stabbing John Luecke with a knife and hitting him with a crowbar, according to court records.—
Matthew Cupelli,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
What about the group winning a democratic election in 2006?—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
10 Nov. 2025
-
There have been a few instances since the election, Geller says, where clients have wondered ahead of a trip how they’ll be received abroad.—
Terry Ward,
CNN Money,
10 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
When choosing a supplement, look for products independently tested or certified by organizations such as the National Sanitation Foundation (NSF), United States Pharmacopeia (USP), or ConsumerLab.—
Nancy LeBrun,
Verywell Health,
6 Nov. 2025
-
But that goes back to choosing whether to make the right decision or the wrong.—
Haadiza Ogwude,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
6 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Picking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/picking. Accessed 13 Nov. 2025.
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