Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for psyching (out)
Verb
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Clumsiness notwithstanding, bringing a criminal case against a journalist who was reporting on a protest is an authoritarian tactic—a means of frightening the press away from uncovering the truth.—
Quinta Jurecic,
The Atlantic,
30 Jan. 2026 -
But monks there complained that the slain king was walking around at night, frightening them with strange sounds.—
Rivka Galchen,
New Yorker,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Directed by Lee Sang-min, the film stars Kim Hye-yoon and Lee Jong-won as a road-view camera crew that encounters terrifying supernatural events at a remote reservoir.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
13 Apr. 2026
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The air in the room changed immediately, terrifying little Liza.—
Elisabeth Garber-Paul,
Rolling Stone,
14 Mar. 2026
Verb
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While some online say their attire looks intimidating, people who have worked with them personally say otherwise.—
Carmela Karcher,
CBS News,
18 Apr. 2026
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Manufacturers typically design steering wheel locks to look intimidating to thieves.—
BestReviews,
Chicago Tribune,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
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And with it almost out in the world, that’s scaring him a little bit.—
David Canfield,
HollywoodReporter,
3 Apr. 2026
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During the first phase, last spring, before DHS got the infusion of new money, Noem led a shock-and-awe campaign aimed mostly at scaring people into leaving.—
Nick Miroff,
The Atlantic,
27 Mar. 2026
Verb
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State wildlife officials have finally come up with a theory to explain how a giant, highly destructive rodent that’s been terrorizing California might have come from Oregon.—
Samantha Lee,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Apr. 2026
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One rabid mongoose bite later, and Ben is a skull-crushing, face-ripping menace terrorizing Lucy and her friends.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
4 Apr. 2026
Verb
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While even beauty sales are softening, that impulse hasn’t disappeared.—
Fortune,
Fortune,
9 Apr. 2026
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They are best suited for improving skin texture, softening fine lines and enhancing product absorption, allowing serums and treatments to penetrate more effectively.—
Lauren Jarvis-Gibson,
Kansas City Star,
8 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The prospect of an acute and prolonged oil shortage threatened to drive up prices for a vast array of goods, sapping energy from consumer spending, which powers most of the nation's economic growth.—
Max Zahn,
ABC News,
10 Apr. 2026
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Sharply rising oil prices and sudden shortages of critical materials such as fertilizer can quickly permeate an economy and cause all kinds of goods and services to increase in price while sapping precious household income.—
Alicia Wallace,
CNN Money,
3 Apr. 2026
Verb
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American greatness isn’t achieved by wasting money on a bloated military budget.—
The Editorial Board,
Oc Register,
13 Apr. 2026
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These layers don’t work seamlessly, wasting energy at every boundary.—
Rupendra Brahambhatt,
Interesting Engineering,
12 Apr. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Psyching (out).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/psyching%20%28out%29. Accessed 20 Apr. 2026.
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