as in hoarse
harsh and dry in sound
a patient beset by a rasping cough from years of smoking
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in rubbing
to make smooth by friction
after sawing the board in half, rasp the ends to remove any splinters
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
3
as in annoying
to disturb the peace of mind of (someone) especially by repeated disagreeable acts
the two siblings seemed intent on rasping each other for the entire car trip
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in eroding
to damage or diminish by continued friction
during the last ice age, glaciers rasped the surface, leaving the deeply scarred rock
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of rasping
Liam Twomey, New York Times, 10 Aug. 2025
Thrips have rasping, sucking mouthparts.
—Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 5 Aug. 2025
Verb
His summer holiday after scoring three times in the group stage for Portugal in the European Under-21 Championship — punctuated by a rasping right-footed shot into the top corner against Poland that circulated widely among Chelsea fans online — consisted of a week spent with friends in the Algarve.
—Liam Twomey, New York Times, 10 Aug. 2025
Thrips have rasping, sucking mouthparts.
—Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 5 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rasping
Adjective
-
Give Palestine your voice, and when your voice goes hoarse, hang your flags, wear your keffiyeh.—
Thomas Smith,
Billboard,
18 Sep. 2025
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And when your voice goes hoarse, hang your flags, wear your keffiyeh.—
Ellise Shafer,
Variety,
18 Sep. 2025
Verb
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More videos show Dangy rubbing Rune’s belly and feeding him with a bottle.—
Lucy Notarantonio,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Oct. 2025
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Like rubbing salt into the wound, an activist investor is seeking to block outgoing Target chief executive officer Brian Cornell’s transition to executive chairman next February.—
David Moin,
Footwear News,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Security camera footage revealed that Tyrese’s dogs were running loose and scratching at a neighbor’s door across the street minutes before Henry was attacked and killed.—
Armon Sadler,
VIBE.com,
30 Sep. 2025
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Security footage from a nearby house showed the dogs scratching at someone’s door and running through yards before Henry was allegedly attacked.—
Jon Blistein,
Rolling Stone,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
A lot of noise around the Chiefs The Chiefs have become a mainstay in NFL discourse by winning three Super Bowls in the Mahomes era, and annoying an endless list of fan bases with their ability to overcome the odds and rally for a late win at an unprecedented rate.—
Scott Chasen,
Kansas City Star,
21 Sep. 2025
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The Sounders’ defenders swarmed Messi from the first minute, and midfielder Obed Vargas was particularly physical, annoying the Argentine icon time and again.—
Michelle Kaufman,
Miami Herald,
1 Sep. 2025
Verb
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That contrast only sharpens China’s advantage, where Beijing offers scale and direction, Europe risks eroding credibility.—
Felicia Jackson,
Forbes.com,
3 Oct. 2025
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But those alternatives are more costly, eroding profits.—
Antonio María Delgado,
Miami Herald,
2 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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This pays off to some extent because Day-Lewis is such a mesmerizing presence, Ray’s gruff manner and terse communications hinting at dark mysteries to be revealed.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
28 Sep. 2025
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Panday plays a convincingly gruff tortured artist alongside Padda’s struggling ingenue, and most of the screen time is devoted to their pairing instead of introducing tertiary excess.—
Proma Khosla,
IndieWire,
13 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The songwriting process for the album’s breakout hit started with the track’s grinding post-chorus breakdown, which Walter had created on a whim.—
Stephen Daw,
Billboard,
1 Oct. 2025
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Stories like these have underscored the human dimension of a grinding war, where soldiers form bonds with animals in the trenches.—
Kapil Kajal,
Interesting Engineering,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Cook over medium-low, whisking and scraping side of pan constantly, until thickened and bubbly, 10 to 12 minutes.—
Emily Teel,
Better Homes & Gardens,
28 Sep. 2025
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Six Grinnell College researchers spent the summer here digging, scraping and screening the soil, most of whom have never been to Wyoming before.—
Jenna McMurtry,
NPR,
28 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Rasping.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rasping. Accessed 6 Oct. 2025.
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