1
as in assumes
to take to or upon oneself
agreed to shoulder the burden of caring for their elderly father
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Recent Examples of shoulders
Pulisic, who shoulders the heaviest load for the USMNT, split two defenders and poked a pass to Weston McKennie, who seemed to be trying to send a cross across the goal.
—
Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 13 June 2026
The least productive line of the four against Minnesota was the second unit, but that trio also shoulders significant defensive responsibilities.
—Corey Masisak, Denver Post, 20 May 2026
Cunningham shoulders the weight of a city thirsty for meaningful basketball.
—Hunter Patterson, New York Times, 30 Apr. 2026
Charismatic and charming as ever, Gosling easily shoulders the job of being the only human onscreen for an epoch.
—Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 18 Mar. 2026
There is great skepticism about Ellison’s ability to make the high-wire act work while Paramount Skydance shoulders a mountain of debt supplied by a consortium that includes Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds.
—Brent Lang, Variety, 27 Feb. 2026
Teams feel uncertainty at the top, momentum slows, and the CEO quietly shoulders more stress, not less.
—Melissa Houston, Forbes.com, 27 Jan. 2026
Buckley shoulders intense on-screen distress without losing grasp of her character’s humanity, and Mescal lets his wan charm melt into something more haunted as Shakespeare ages and wrestles with loss.
—David Sims, The Atlantic, 27 Nov. 2025
Atop that sits the conundrum of living in a city so small that every citizen shoulders the stress of celebrity.
—Literary Hub, 26 Nov. 2025
Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 13 June 2026
The least productive line of the four against Minnesota was the second unit, but that trio also shoulders significant defensive responsibilities.
—Corey Masisak, Denver Post, 20 May 2026
Cunningham shoulders the weight of a city thirsty for meaningful basketball.
—Hunter Patterson, New York Times, 30 Apr. 2026
Charismatic and charming as ever, Gosling easily shoulders the job of being the only human onscreen for an epoch.
—Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 18 Mar. 2026
There is great skepticism about Ellison’s ability to make the high-wire act work while Paramount Skydance shoulders a mountain of debt supplied by a consortium that includes Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds.
—Brent Lang, Variety, 27 Feb. 2026
Teams feel uncertainty at the top, momentum slows, and the CEO quietly shoulders more stress, not less.
—Melissa Houston, Forbes.com, 27 Jan. 2026
Buckley shoulders intense on-screen distress without losing grasp of her character’s humanity, and Mescal lets his wan charm melt into something more haunted as Shakespeare ages and wrestles with loss.
—David Sims, The Atlantic, 27 Nov. 2025
Atop that sits the conundrum of living in a city so small that every citizen shoulders the stress of celebrity.
—Literary Hub, 26 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shoulders
Verb
-
The dominant policy framework assumes that broader access equals better outcomes.—
Christopher Carita,
The Orlando Sentinel,
21 June 2026
-
This assumes, of course, that a work permit eventually comes through.—
E. Tammy Kim,
New Yorker,
20 June 2026
Verb
-
Meta announced its new set of smart glasses priced at $299, undercutting some of its earlier models as the company pushes to bring wearables to a broader audience.—
Justina Lee,
CNBC,
24 June 2026
-
When an agent moves money inside a payments platform, alters a record in a hospital network or pushes code into production, the damage is harder to contain.—
Najwa Aaraj,
Fortune,
23 June 2026
Verb
-
If the bank accepts the notice, the creditor must stop collecting from the survivor.—
Anna Schecter,
CBS News,
17 June 2026
-
Eton College, located in the English county of Berkshire, educates boys aged 13 to 18 and accepts around 270 students per academic year.—
Jack Guy,
CNN Money,
16 June 2026
Verb
-
But the Heat landing Giannis elbows its way to the top of our sports marquee.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
23 June 2026
-
The mass release of dud studs elbows out fertile males, preventing them from mating with females, which generally only mate once.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
3 June 2026
Verb
-
There are various theories, but there's a certain amount of this kind of behavior that definitely bears watching.—
Dana Taylor,
USA Today,
23 June 2026
-
The data from those campuses bears it out.—
Michelle Sobel,
Fortune,
23 June 2026
Verb
-
With electric vehicles continuing to gain share, that further squeezes European carmakers.—
Neil Winton,
Forbes.com,
20 June 2026
-
At one point, the SUV squeezes past a traffic cone while making a left turn and narrowly avoids colliding with a large truck.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
17 June 2026
Verb
-
One year later, the XFL muscles its way onto the national sports scene with its first two games.—
Assistant Sports Editor,
Los Angeles Times,
3 Feb. 2026
-
Gringo Films does not sound like the kind of company that muscles its way into the global animation business.—
Scott Roxborough,
HollywoodReporter,
29 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Shoulders.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shoulders. Accessed 24 Jun. 2026.
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