1
as in perched
to be in or move into a seated or standing position with your legs on either side of (something)
She straddled the horse and waited for her riding partner to mount.
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2
as in spanned
to be on both sides of (something)
The town straddles the river. The movie straddles the line between comedy and drama.
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3
as in shook
to agree with or seem to agree with two opposite sides of (something)
The politician straddled the issue for weeks.
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Recent Examples of straddled
The hero of the book’s first section is the sixteenth-century Spanish priest and writer Bartolomé de las Casas, who straddled the Old World and the New, issuing startling moral novelties to both.
—
Vinson Cunningham, New Yorker, 25 Dec. 2025
Purdy correctly straddled the line on the play between being safe and taking a shot.
—Jerry McDonald, Mercury News, 1 Dec. 2025
Paytas has straddled the stage, screen and podcast studio since her Broadway debut earlier this year.
—Lex Goldstein, PEOPLE, 30 Nov. 2025
Piles of hail that resembled dirty remnants of snow in the desert straddled rows of the largely empty parking lot.
—Ronald J. Hansen, AZCentral.com, 20 Nov. 2025
As Jaramillo straddled Rustrian, Rustrian grabbed Jaramillo’s gun and shot him several times.
—Devoun Cetoute, Miami Herald, 10 Nov. 2025
Messi, meanwhile, finished the season with five goals in his last two matches to put the finishing touches on the Golden Boot, but his campaign’s foundation came via a league-record five straight multi-goal games that straddled Inter Miami’s participation in the FIFA Club World Cup.
—Avi Creditor, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2025
The tensions are evident and the frosty relations between the countries are constantly straddled by administrators.
—Tristan Lavalette, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
In Tennessee, Vrabel’s defenses straddled league average most years.
—Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 31 Aug. 2025
Vinson Cunningham, New Yorker, 25 Dec. 2025
Purdy correctly straddled the line on the play between being safe and taking a shot.
—Jerry McDonald, Mercury News, 1 Dec. 2025
Paytas has straddled the stage, screen and podcast studio since her Broadway debut earlier this year.
—Lex Goldstein, PEOPLE, 30 Nov. 2025
Piles of hail that resembled dirty remnants of snow in the desert straddled rows of the largely empty parking lot.
—Ronald J. Hansen, AZCentral.com, 20 Nov. 2025
As Jaramillo straddled Rustrian, Rustrian grabbed Jaramillo’s gun and shot him several times.
—Devoun Cetoute, Miami Herald, 10 Nov. 2025
Messi, meanwhile, finished the season with five goals in his last two matches to put the finishing touches on the Golden Boot, but his campaign’s foundation came via a league-record five straight multi-goal games that straddled Inter Miami’s participation in the FIFA Club World Cup.
—Avi Creditor, New York Times, 19 Oct. 2025
The tensions are evident and the frosty relations between the countries are constantly straddled by administrators.
—Tristan Lavalette, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
In Tennessee, Vrabel’s defenses straddled league average most years.
—Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 31 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for straddled
Verb
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Machen’s London was a descendant of Blake’s, where angels perched in trees.—
Hari Kunzru,
Harpers Magazine,
27 Jan. 2026
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Travelers can check out the iconic Edinburgh Castle, one of the oldest fortified sites in Europe, perched upon a hill, before enjoying the UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Old Town and the sweeping vistas of Arthur's Seat.—
Kathleen Wong,
USA Today,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Hollywood is mourning the death of Catherine O’Hara, the beloved actress and comedian whose illustrious career spanned decades across television and film.—
Jessica Lynch,
Billboard,
31 Jan. 2026
-
These are just a few of the dozens of outsize personalities Catherine O’Hara, the comedy icon who died on Friday at 71, inhabited over the course of a career that spanned more than half a century.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
30 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
This should have people across the country absolutely shook.—
David Zimmermann,
The Washington Examiner,
30 Jan. 2026
-
The birth of Endeavor startled Hollywood, but Endeavor’s subsequent takeover of powerhouse William Morris shook the town to its core.—
Mike Fleming Jr,
Deadline,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Kay squatted by a monitor, bobbing his head to the beat.—
Rebecca Mead,
New Yorker,
8 Dec. 2025
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The brace successfully monitored joint bending while the subject walked, ran, squatted, and jumped, even reconstructing the person’s running gait with precision.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
3 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Was there a moment when your work as a national park volunteer and resident truly intersected with your life as an artist?—
Outside,
Outside,
18 Jan. 2026
-
For longtime Housewives fans, the documentary promises to address what really happens inside Faith Temple and how Mary’s reality TV fame intersected with her role as First Lady of the church.—
Jenzia Burgos,
StyleCaster,
1 Jan. 2026
Verb
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During the demonstration, the Dexory bot ducked under a low pipe near the ceiling and stopped before rolling around a person standing in its path.—
Liam Rappleye,
Freep.com,
28 Jan. 2026
-
Zayn leaped off the top, and Orton ducked.—
Blake Oestriecher,
Forbes.com,
25 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Levi Jones, a 33-year-old business owner, pulled up to Sacred Eye Tattoos in Hollywood last week and sat for eight hours getting a photorealistic black-and-white portrait of Mangione on his leg.—
Amanda Rosa,
Orlando Sentinel,
24 Dec. 2024
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The birthday boy and his big sister Sterling Skye, 3, each sat between one of their parents’ laps.—
Angel Saunders,
People.com,
24 Dec. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Straddled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/straddled. Accessed 2 Feb. 2026.
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