tinkered

Definition of tinkerednext
past tense of tinker

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for tinkered
Verb
  • Days passed and bombs kept falling, while oil tankers idled on either side of the Strait of Hormuz, which Iran had effectively closed in retaliation for the war launched by Israel and the United States.
    Ishaan Tharoor, New Yorker, 8 Apr. 2026
  • Oil tankers and other commercial shippers that would normally travel through the narrow Strait of Hormuz off Iran’s southern coast have been idled due to Iran’s threats and attacks.
    Matt Peterson, CNBC, 1 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • Flight attendants turned into drill sergeants, barking at passengers who flouted mask rules or dawdled too long eating that snack with the mask off.
    Thomas Black, Twin Cities, 21 Dec. 2025
  • Fava snuffled and dawdled and took her own sweet time up the sidewalk.
    Dan Kois, New Yorker, 17 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Nearby, people and their dogs who had moved into the shelter for the duration of the war lounged on air mattresses, scrolling through their phones.
    ABC News, ABC News, 2 Mar. 2026
  • Just days after hard-launching her relationship with French filmmaker Romain Gavras, EmRata lounged in a plunging plush white robe while wearing nothing but some sparkling loud luxury accessories.
    Lara Walsh, InStyle, 25 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • Koch bobbed by again, this time with glasses and a Harry Potter lightning bolt doodled on her face.
    Michael Tedder, The Atlantic, 12 Apr. 2026
  • Lauren Elliott, though, was a designer at Broderbund Games, working in a former liquor store beneath a sign that said DEPARTMENT OF REDUNDANCY REDUCTION DEPARTMENT alongside an impish ex-Disney animator named Gene Portwood who often doodled Mickey Mouse in obscene poses.
    Eric Boodman, Vulture, 25 Mar. 2026
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.

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Cite this Entry

“Tinkered.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tinkered. Accessed 19 Apr. 2026.

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