as in stabbing
to urge or push forward with or as if with a pointed object
gently spurred the horse with his heels
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Recent Examples of spurring
For Native people, the war marked a dangerous fork in the road, stirring famine, spurring a massive refugee crisis, and permanently shifting the balance of power in the heart of the continent.
—
Literary Hub, 7 Nov. 2025
The facility is spurring an explosion of growth and development meant to serve businesses and workers at the new plant, all in the area of Phoenix that relies on the Colorado River.
—Austin Corona, AZCentral.com, 6 Nov. 2025
For the most part, these blueprints have been geared at spurring growth and unity as the nation transformed from a rural, agrarian economy to an urbanized, developed powerhouse.
—Shaoyu Yuan, The Conversation, 5 Nov. 2025
Kalshi head of politics Jaron Zhou pointed to turnout data as spurring the change.
—Andrew Stanton, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2025
That’s because higher asset prices are spurring consumers to spend more freely than before, and consumption represents about 70% of GDP.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 2 Nov. 2025
What’s spurring all the news experiments?
—Brian Steinberg, Variety, 31 Oct. 2025
Mads Pederson, former world cycling champion, credits it with spurring him to his best-ever 90-minute ride.
—Alex Hutchinson, Outside, 29 Oct. 2025
For many shrubs, pruning in the fall weakens the plant by spurring tender new growth that is vulnerable to coming frosts.
—Erica Browne Grivas, Better Homes & Gardens, 27 Oct. 2025
Literary Hub, 7 Nov. 2025
The facility is spurring an explosion of growth and development meant to serve businesses and workers at the new plant, all in the area of Phoenix that relies on the Colorado River.
—Austin Corona, AZCentral.com, 6 Nov. 2025
For the most part, these blueprints have been geared at spurring growth and unity as the nation transformed from a rural, agrarian economy to an urbanized, developed powerhouse.
—Shaoyu Yuan, The Conversation, 5 Nov. 2025
Kalshi head of politics Jaron Zhou pointed to turnout data as spurring the change.
—Andrew Stanton, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2025
That’s because higher asset prices are spurring consumers to spend more freely than before, and consumption represents about 70% of GDP.
—Jason Ma, Fortune, 2 Nov. 2025
What’s spurring all the news experiments?
—Brian Steinberg, Variety, 31 Oct. 2025
Mads Pederson, former world cycling champion, credits it with spurring him to his best-ever 90-minute ride.
—Alex Hutchinson, Outside, 29 Oct. 2025
For many shrubs, pruning in the fall weakens the plant by spurring tender new growth that is vulnerable to coming frosts.
—Erica Browne Grivas, Better Homes & Gardens, 27 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spurring
Verb
-
The trail through this passage is narrow and lined with signature desert plants — which is to say my path became a gauntlet of tiny, stabbing swords.—
Joan Meiners,
AZCentral.com,
10 Nov. 2025
-
Jared Luecke, 33, is facing murder and tampering with evidence charges and is accused of repeatedly stabbing John Luecke with a knife and hitting him with a crowbar, according to court records.—
Matthew Cupelli,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
7 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Tonight, after poking the bear, this bear roared.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
9 Nov. 2025
-
There are also dual Akrapvoic exhausts poking out the rear, framed by slim taillights.—
Abhimanyu Ghoshal,
New Atlas,
7 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Anthropic’s Claude wanted to know whether my headache was tension-related, due to sinus pressure, or something else entirely—hardly a goading question.—
Lila Shroff,
The Atlantic,
22 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The irascible Cox has spent years prodding Day-Lewis in interviews over his acting techniques, largely as a way of explaining his irritation with Succession co-star (and Day-Lewis’s fellow Method actor) Jeremy Strong.—
Jason P. Frank,
Vulture,
3 Nov. 2025
-
As Denji grapples with his growing feelings for her despite his loyalty to Makima, Reze begins prodding him to consider his place in Public Safety, and whether a teenager should really be put in the position of risking his life for the bare minimum of food and shelter.—
Wilson Chapman,
IndieWire,
22 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Some were students working their way through school, digging the independence from their families that that kind of money gave them.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
6 Nov. 2025
-
The question now is whether members of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will penalize a challenging film for not doing the sort of business that a fluffier film might have, or reward Johnson for digging deeper than ever before.—
Scott Feinberg,
HollywoodReporter,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Miami's defense has struggled to keep opponents out of the end zone, allowing 27 points per game, but the offense has struggled just as much punching it in themselves, with the Dolphins only scoring 20 points per game, both of which rank in the bottom third of the league.—
Shaun McAvoy,
MSNBC Newsweek,
4 Nov. 2025
-
Videos shared on social media showed federal agents pinning a man to the ground and punching him in the head.—
Zoe Sottile,
CNN Money,
3 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Last week, Ian seemed to be nudging Robert into taking her off the board.—
Noel Murray,
Vulture,
2 Nov. 2025
-
Where’s this rising courage nudging you to act bigger and bolder?—
USA TODAY,
USA Today,
28 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The right words can open doors the heart’s been knocking on for a while.—
Valerie Mesa,
PEOPLE,
6 Nov. 2025
-
Once the buzz starts, fringe brands come knocking.—
Chris Cardillo,
Rolling Stone,
5 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Spurring.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spurring. Accessed 15 Nov. 2025.
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