pry 1 of 2

verb (1)

Definition of prynext
1
as in to pull
to raise, move, or pull apart with or as if with a lever it took some effort to pry up the trap door

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to yank
to draw out by force or with effort a vain attempt to pry the cork out of a wine bottle

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

pry

2 of 2

verb (2)

ˈprī How to pronounce pry (audio)
as in to interfere
to interest oneself in what is not one's concern don't go prying into other people's business

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for pry
  1. pull
  2. yank
  3. interfere
  4. lift
  5. extract
  6. poke
  7. pluck
  8. mess
Verb
  • Pratt fouled off Thornton’s first pitch and then pulled back his bat on the second one, a fastball right down the middle.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 26 Aug. 2026
  • Washington has turned to pulling economic levers six months into a war on Iran that has ground to a stalemate militarily, with peace talks stalled and most traffic through the crucial Strait of Hormuz blocked.
    — Tucker Reals, CBS News, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of pull
Verb
  • Participants will yank invasive plants to help restore the canyon.
    — Jaclyn Cosgrove, Los Angeles Times, 20 Aug. 2026
  • In Berkeley, where California clay culture yanked ceramics out of the category of polite craft and into something huge, physical, ugly, and beautiful, Heilmann learned to weld.
    — Jerry Saltz, Vulture, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of yank
Verb
  • Skip a formal meal in favor of easy-to-grab snacks that won’t interfere too much with puzzle pieces.
    — Jessica Safavimehr, Southern Living, 21 Aug. 2026
  • Other kids can, too, without their parents interfering on Facebook groups.
    — Mary Frances Ruskell, CNN Money, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of interfere
Verb
  • Walking into a grief weight-lifting class, though — that could be an easier task.
    — Sneha Dhandapani, CNN Money, 25 Aug. 2026
  • Another is poised to lift off within the next month, and may be the rocket's first attempt at fully reaching orbit.
    — Josh Dinner, Space.com, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of lift
Verb
  • Early in this year’s war, the United States and Israel considered launching ground operations to extract nuclear material but never initiated them, judging them to be highly risky and unlikely to affect the regime’s decision-making.
    — Nate Swanson, Foreign Affairs, 25 Aug. 2026
  • With the clock racing down to find Joe before she's extracted out of the country to her death, the team launches an assault against an airport hangar.
    — David Hookstead OutKick, FOXNews.com, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of extract
Verb
  • Defender Kevin O'Toole poked the ball away, but Mboma Dem put away a sliding first-touch shot that opened the scoring in the 11th minute.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 20 Aug. 2026
  • Somebody had taken a cosmic needle and poked holes in the dome so that the light could filter in.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of poke
Verb
  • If the Panthers didn’t want him, in other words, he’d probably be plucked off the waiver wire by someone else.
    — Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 24 Aug. 2026
  • Phoebes are adept flycatchers, and usually pluck their meals in midflight.
    — Joan Morris, Mercury News, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of pluck
Verb
  • Here’s how to bring flowers from your cutting garden indoors while keeping insects and mess out.
    — Andy Wilcox, Better Homes & Gardens, 1 Aug. 2026
  • The only way to mess this up is to not allow yourself the opportunity to touch it again and again and again.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 30 July 2026
Definition of mess
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.

Browse Nearby Words

prurient
pry
prying
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Cite this Entry

“Pry.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pry. Accessed 27 Aug. 2026.

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