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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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Jokic’s 3-point shooting hasn’t been intimidating.—
Bennett Durando,
Denver Post,
24 Apr. 2026
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That's when the WhatsApp messages became intimidating.—
Anna Schecter,
CBS News,
23 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Plus, nobody will careen past you at 110 mph, scaring you spitless.—
Allen Best,
Denver Post,
24 Apr. 2026
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This isn’t a film about trauma, or smuggled-in social issues, or anything at all, really, besides the honest workaday business of scaring the bejesus out of its audience, rinsing, and repeating with extra vigor.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
16 Apr. 2026
Verb
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But when a sadistic local (Taron Egerton) begins terrorizing her, a frantic chase ensues.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
17 Apr. 2026
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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
Verb
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After a decade of animosity, opinion polls show Americans’ views of China are softening, especially among the young.—
Andy Browne,
semafor.com,
28 Apr. 2026
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With hindsight perhaps softening memories of sunstroke, cast members and a number of below-the-line crew now fairly rhapsodize about the uniqueness of the shoot.—
Chris Lee,
Vulture,
27 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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There is only an outdated technicality that forces grocery stores to heat chickens and cool them back down just to comply, wasting energy, degrading quality, and adding cost.—
Kelly McCarthy,
ABC News,
23 Apr. 2026
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Rosenior’s pre-game decision to switch to a back three only seemed to further unsettle his out-of-form side, with Brighton creating — and wasting — numerous other high-quality chances.—
Liam Twomey,
New York Times,
21 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 30 Apr. 2026.
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