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
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of rasping
María Ospina, The Dial, 31 Mar. 2026
Thrips have rasping, sucking mouthparts.
—Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 3 Mar. 2026
Cody Gapko struck the post three times — once with a deflected cross, twice with rasping drives — while Senne Lammens saved Alexander Isak’s shot with an outstretched right foot.
—Carl Anka, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2025
Negron, in particular, completely throws himself into it, rasping and howling and wailing out ad-libs.
—Paul Grein, Billboard, 3 Sep. 2019
Verb
When the beetle takes flight, the woman, who is busy unpacking, doesn’t realize for a moment that there’s something out of place about that rasping ruckus, that foreign hum.
—María Ospina, The Dial, 31 Mar. 2026
Thrips have rasping, sucking mouthparts.
—Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 3 Mar. 2026
Cody Gapko struck the post three times — once with a deflected cross, twice with rasping drives — while Senne Lammens saved Alexander Isak’s shot with an outstretched right foot.
—Carl Anka, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2025
Negron, in particular, completely throws himself into it, rasping and howling and wailing out ad-libs.
—Paul Grein, Billboard, 3 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rasping
Adjective
-
The quality of a live show, especially one from a legacy band like Journey, comes down to whether the fans leave satisfied: If diehards and casuals alike walk out of the building with grins and hoarse voices from singing along to the big numbers, that’s a successful outing.—
Heather Bushman,
IndyStar,
18 Mar. 2026
-
Tears have been shed, throats have been screamed hoarse.—
Kyle Feldscher,
CNN Money,
10 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
As the court moved to watch the KSTU-TV segment, Tyler Robinson appeared to begin fidgeting, with one of his hands moving and rubbing his fingers back and forth.—
Stepheny Price , Sarah Rumpf-Whitten , Michael Ruiz,
FOXNews.com,
17 Apr. 2026
-
Sara Aparacio, a resident cleaning expert at Homeaglow, equates scrubbing an appliance with an abrasive sponge to rubbing it with very fine sandpaper.—
Maria Sabella,
The Spruce,
11 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Pine-Sol removes that grime without scratching the appliances.—
Mary Cornetta,
Better Homes & Gardens,
17 Apr. 2026
-
Pulido told the crowd, before scratching his signature onto the brim and handing it to Jimena, who pumped it in the air and shrieked with joy.—
Jesús Rodríguez,
New Yorker,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Sometimes, rage bait can be relatively harmless – a recipe that contains disgusting food combinations or someone annoying their pet, partner or sibling.—
Issy Ronald,
CNN Money,
1 Dec. 2025
-
But what’s been annoying me even more is that these women should have been trained by producers to start recording on their own cell phones if drama starts to unfold after cameras go down.—
Tom Smyth,
Vulture,
12 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
Despite nationwide polls showing eroding support, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán retains strong backing in rural communities and among older Hungarians, who credit him with representing their interests and maintaining national pride.—
Justin Spike,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Apr. 2026
-
In the years following the departure of Ailes, many critics further assailed the network for eroding any line between news reporting and commentary and political advocacy.—
Encyclopedia Britannica,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
10 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Leslie and her gruff-but-caring, staunch Libertarian boss Ron Swanson (the incomparable Nick Offerman) became symbols of bygone bipartisanship, not to mention endless memes.—
Jennifer Armstrong,
IndieWire,
15 Apr. 2026
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And Zendaya, as to be expected, really, is fantastic, slipping effortlessly under the skin of the gruff addict in recovery, trying to claw her way out of an increasingly deep hole.—
Radhika Seth,
Vogue,
9 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Bodies in motion are intercut with a bespoke gun factory’s grinding gears; human combats are juxtaposed with VR imagery or first-person shooter games.—
Jordan Mintzer,
HollywoodReporter,
21 Apr. 2026
-
Best Krups coffee grinders This is perfect for precision grinding for cold brew, espresso and pour-over coffee.—
BestReviews,
Chicago Tribune,
20 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
In photo after photo, video after video, North Shore residents are painted in mud, scraping it off driveways, sweeping it out of kitchens and heaving it into trucks along with their household debris.—
Thomas Heaton,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Apr. 2026
-
Process for 1 to 2 minutes, scraping down the sides as needed, until the mixture is smooth and sticky.—
Laura Mclively,
Mercury News,
10 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Rasping.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rasping. Accessed 24 Apr. 2026.
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