SCREWS Synonyms: 82 Similar and Opposite Words

screws

verb

present tense third-person singular of screw

as in distorts

to twist (something) out of a natural or normal shape or condition screwed up his face at the taste of the medicine

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in squeezes

to rob by the use of trickery or threats managed to screw his siblings out of their share of the inheritance

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of screws The pen cap then screws onto the lower tube to create an extended striker that's easy to grip and move. — New Atlas, 22 June 2026 Presented with an opportunity to finally confess his feelings to Nikki, our man screws the metaphorical pooch. — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 14 June 2026 Though, to be fair, Coop screws this up more often than not. — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 29 May 2026 Kinto’s travel tumbler ($34) is a handsome receptacle available in a number of colors, with a lid that screws on tight and enough insulation to keep a cup of coffee warm all day long. — Kelefa Sanneh, New Yorker, 6 Dec. 2025 Or are those simply screws Vrabel’s staff will tighten with more time and practice? — Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 25 Sep. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for screws

Verb

But as Gingras and Khelfaoui argue in the their preprint, removing the two papers distorts the historical record.

— Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 28 June 2026
Progressives across the country have spent years arguing that unlimited outside spending distorts democracy, empowers wealthy interests, and undermines trust in government.

— Julie Won, New York Daily News, 14 June 2026

Definition of distorts

Verb

As a result, food inflation squeezes the amount of money people have left over to buy things like Levi's jeans and plane tickets, which brings us to our next earnings preview.

— Zev Fima,Kevin Stankiewicz, CNBC, 5 July 2026
One of our favorite budget models on the market right now is HP's OmniBook X Flip, which squeezes every bit of performance out of its components to deliver capable everyday productivity performance in a good-looking package.

— K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 3 July 2026

Definition of squeezes

Verb

Working on his audio venture makes Jacob more narcissistic and less socially competent; the podcast deforms his understanding of what friends are for.

— Katy Waldman, New Yorker, 13 July 2026
Beneath that sits a tough magnesium alloy layer, followed by a hyper-elastic foam that deforms heavily to swallow the brunt of the kinetic shock waves.

— Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 10 July 2026

Definition of deforms

Verb

His torso and thighs grow eye-poppingly muscular beneath their skimpy fur-and-leather togs—a development that does not go unnoticed by a warrior named Red Hair, who plucks the young hunk from his post and tosses him into the prime time of the gladiator pit.

— Naomi Fry, New Yorker, 15 June 2026
But the emotional gravity of this offering's deeply personal, melancholic lyrical content plucks an undeniably profound chord that uniquely separates it from the rest of his work.

— Chris Barilla, PEOPLE, 29 May 2026

Definition of plucks

Verb

The standout episode—the conversion history of Kendra, a Black striver married to the Schwoopers’ daughter, Shira—sticks its landing, enabling the viewer to see faith as a refuge, not a cage.

— Emily Nussbaum, New Yorker, 9 July 2026
Otherwise, Kail sticks closely to the template established for him, recreating every scene and sequence from the first movie with ruthless fidelity and adding essentially no departures of any significance.

— Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 8 July 2026