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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Like the strung-up coyotes, the Ghoul typically looks normal from afar but terrifying up close.—
Shirley Li,
The Atlantic,
5 Feb. 2026
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That’s terrifying on a whole different level.—
Will Harris,
Entertainment Weekly,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Lemon was charged with conspiracy against the rights of religious freedom at a place of worship and injuring, intimidating and interfering with the exercise of the right of religious freedom at a place of worship.—
Selina Guevara,
NBC news,
13 Feb. 2026
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The Justice Department has charged Lemon and eight others in the case with conspiracy against rights and with injuring, intimidating, or interfering with the exercise of religious freedom at a place of worship under the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances Act.—
Kaelan Deese,
The Washington Examiner,
13 Feb. 2026
Verb
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According to Bloomberg, analysts are already antsy about increasing prices scaring away customers, particularly as the cost of living continues to rise.—
Victor Tangermann,
Futurism,
5 Feb. 2026
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Most of that money would go to compensate ranchers for cattle eaten by wolves and for guard dogs, scaring devices or other means to keep them away from livestock.—
Lila Seidman,
Los Angeles Times,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Set between Seasons 2 and 3 of Stranger Things, Tales from ’85 returns viewers to Hawkins in the stark winter of 1985, where the original characters must confront new monsters and unravel a paranormal mystery that is terrorizing their town.—
Armando Tinoco,
Deadline,
11 Feb. 2026
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Bad Bunny, Kehlani, Olivia Dean, Shaboozey, SZA, and Billie Eilish all used their platforms at the Grammys to talk about how ICE is dehumanizing immigrants and terrorizing American communities.—
Kathleen Newman-Bremang,
Refinery29,
9 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Your protective nature can close up quickly, but softening your tone and naming your needs invites deeper closeness without losing your boundaries.—
Tarot.com,
Chicago Tribune,
17 Feb. 2026
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Blacksmiths have relied on the softening glow of the forge since the Iron Age, and Metallurgy 101 dictates that thermal energy makes atoms slide past each other with ease.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
16 Feb. 2026
Verb
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That morale-sapping defeat in Leeds was not the first of its kind since his late October appointment.—
Paul Taylor,
New York Times,
11 Feb. 2026
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Seizing on the frigid weather, Russia has launched an all-out assault on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, with the apparent aim of keeping up pressure amid ongoing peace negotiations—and sapping public morale.—
Michael Holtz,
New Yorker,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Federal overreach has failed our children, with literacy rates falling and a bloated federal budget wasting taxpayer dollars.—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
11 Feb. 2026
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Food systems will not be improved by individuals buying water-wasting organic cashews harvested by underpaid migrant workers in deadly temperatures.—
Annie Levin,
Washington Post,
10 Feb. 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 18 Feb. 2026.
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