as in searched
to look through (as a place) carefully or thoroughly in an effort to find or discover something
rifled the desk drawer in search of the insurance policy
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Recent Examples of rifled
The junior then rifled a cross towards the near post, where a cutting Annabel Grentz headed it into the bottom-right corner, handing the Patriots the 2-1 advantage.
—
Clark Fahrenthold, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Jan. 2026
On the Knicks’ opening offensive possession, Brunson blew by Kawhi Leonard with a crafty in-and-out, got two feet into the paint to force then rifled a pass to OG Anunoby in the corner.
—Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 8 Jan. 2026
Ovechkin then rifled home a wrister from the left circle to end a four-game goal drought.
—CBS News, 6 Jan. 2026
Ovechkin then rifled home a wrister from the left circle to end a four-game goal drought and give the hosts a 5-1 lead near the midpoint of the second period.
—Oc Register, 5 Jan. 2026
Tampa Bay erased a one-goal deficit when Jake Guentzel got behind Florida’s special teams backline and rifled a short past Sergei Bobrovsky.
—Adam H. Beasley, Miami Herald, 28 Dec. 2025
Curtis was grabbing Hernandez, while Strickland rifled off multiple punches.
—James Brizuela, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Aug. 2025
The pair combined again shortly after the hour-mark, with City’s new signings teeing up Haaland by cutting the ball back across the box, before the Norwegian rifled the ball past Sa.
—Dan Cancian, Forbes.com, 18 Aug. 2025
Xander Bogaerts tried the same to lead off the second inning; Smith rifled a throw to second baseman Miguel Rojas to mark the Padres’ third out on the bases in a span of just five hitters.
—Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 17 Aug. 2025
Clark Fahrenthold, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Jan. 2026
On the Knicks’ opening offensive possession, Brunson blew by Kawhi Leonard with a crafty in-and-out, got two feet into the paint to force then rifled a pass to OG Anunoby in the corner.
—Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 8 Jan. 2026
Ovechkin then rifled home a wrister from the left circle to end a four-game goal drought.
—CBS News, 6 Jan. 2026
Ovechkin then rifled home a wrister from the left circle to end a four-game goal drought and give the hosts a 5-1 lead near the midpoint of the second period.
—Oc Register, 5 Jan. 2026
Tampa Bay erased a one-goal deficit when Jake Guentzel got behind Florida’s special teams backline and rifled a short past Sergei Bobrovsky.
—Adam H. Beasley, Miami Herald, 28 Dec. 2025
Curtis was grabbing Hernandez, while Strickland rifled off multiple punches.
—James Brizuela, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Aug. 2025
The pair combined again shortly after the hour-mark, with City’s new signings teeing up Haaland by cutting the ball back across the box, before the Norwegian rifled the ball past Sa.
—Dan Cancian, Forbes.com, 18 Aug. 2025
Xander Bogaerts tried the same to lead off the second inning; Smith rifled a throw to second baseman Miguel Rojas to mark the Padres’ third out on the bases in a span of just five hitters.
—Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 17 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rifled
Verb
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The student suspected of having the firearm was removed from class, and the school resource deputy searched their bag, Boyd said.—
Caroline Zimmerman,
Kansas City Star,
21 Feb. 2026
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The plane was declared a crime scene and was searched and cleared by authorities before departing after a nearly three-hour delay.—
Jessica Mekles,
FOXNews.com,
20 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Raman spectroscopy scanned multiple points across the film to detect structural damage.—
Rupendra Brahambhatt,
Interesting Engineering,
21 Feb. 2026
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The atmosphere at Guard and Grace Guard and his team scanned cities nationwide for the right spot to open the next Guard and Grace, eventually tossing aside Atlanta, Dallas, Chicago, Nashville and Miami in favor of Charlotte.—
Heidi Finley,
Charlotte Observer,
20 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The rooms Each of the 11 rooms and two suites is individually decorated, some in bold blues and whites, to reflect the ocean beyond, with elegant colonial-style furnishings that mirror the origins of its founding English owners.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
24 Feb. 2026
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Dear Abby is written by Abigail Van Buren, also known as Jeanne Phillips, and was founded by her mother, Pauline Phillips.—
Jeanne Phillips,
Mercury News,
24 Feb. 2026
Verb
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In the other corner, hair combed neatly back and beard tidily trimmed, stood Maxwell Jacob Friedman, the reigning All Elite Wrestling World Champion.—
Michael Ballaban,
CNN Money,
14 Feb. 2026
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For nearly three years, Dillard combed private databases, accessing records of 911 calls made during automobile accidents, officials said.—
Leonard Greene,
New York Daily News,
6 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Rifled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rifled. Accessed 24 Feb. 2026.
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