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
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Montano-Campos acknowledged the study doesn’t take into account discontinuation of GLP-1 use for financial reasons, since the simulation assumes lifetime access to the drug on a consistent basis.—
Mia Osmonbekov,
Fortune,
14 June 2026
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The phrase assumes that fatness belongs firmly in the past, yet the very need for such a term suggests otherwise.—
Virgie Tovar,
Forbes.com,
14 June 2026
Verb
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The city spends far less per person on its parks than other comparable cities and has seen its full-time workforce shrink by 28% since 2008, said Tori Kjer, executive director of the Los Angeles Neighborhood Land Trust, which pushes for more equitable access to park space.—
David Zahniser,
Los Angeles Times,
17 June 2026
-
The side of the other foot then pushes the ball away before the outside of the same foot snaps it back in the other direction.—
Stuart James,
New York Times,
16 June 2026
Verb
-
After losing their cattle, Rip accepts a lifeline from Beulah Jackson (Annette Bening), who so far has been a major adversary, and joins her 10 Petal Ranch as a foreman.—
Saman Shafiq,
USA Today,
11 June 2026
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Percy accepts this and leaves Barry’s Bay the next day, returning home to Seattle.—
Allison DeGrushe,
StyleCaster,
10 June 2026
Verb
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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
-
Before the Bride elbows her way into his life, Frank, ever so lonely, retreats into the world of movies.—
Stephanie Zacharek,
Time,
4 Mar. 2026
Verb
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In the clip, the brother bears roll around and fall over each other in the snow, using their massive claws to dig into the piles and the cold ground below.—
Moná Thomas,
PEOPLE,
16 June 2026
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This particular example, in a 700 ml bottle, bears a washi label and is signed by Shinji Fukuyo, chief blender at Japanese distiller Suntory, parent company to Yamazaki.—
Brian Boucher,
ARTnews.com,
15 June 2026
Verb
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Systolic is the pressure on a person’s arteries when the heart squeezes and sends blood throughout the body.—
Lindsey Leake,
NBC news,
14 June 2026
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View gallery - 10 images Intended for full-time living, the Porto squeezes a lot into its modest footprint.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
8 June 2026
Verb
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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
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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 17 Jun. 2026.
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