1
as in shuffling
to move heavily or clumsily
flooded residents who were forced to trudge through waist-deep water
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in stumbling
to proceed or act clumsily or ineffectually
no expert on taxes, I spent the whole weekend trudging through government forms
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of trudging
Artemis has been trudging along at a once-every-three-years flight rate, which Isaacman deems unacceptable.
—
Arkansas Online, 31 Mar. 2026
Instead of trudging back to the Warriors’ locker room to field the same questions, Kuminga lingered on the court postgame to mingle with old colleagues.
—Joseph Dycus, Mercury News, 22 Mar. 2026
New York City kept schools open despite angry parents trudging through snow drifts, while Philadelphia and Long Island closed as crews battle conditions.
—Jake Offenhartz, Los Angeles Times, 24 Feb. 2026
Before the fourth official even held his board up to signal Bailey’s substitution for Jadon Sancho in the 61st minute, the 28-year-old was already trudging off, carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.
—Jacob Tanswell, New York Times, 22 Feb. 2026
The rest of our fair crew is trudging along through broken wrists and CT scans.
—Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 8 Jan. 2026
The hill sits off a dirt road and takes a bit of trudging up before the dimpled geodes start appearing in earnest.
—Npr Staff, NPR, 18 Dec. 2025
Meanwhile, Paramount has shown little inclination of quietly trudging off into the sunset, as was made clear by the complaints the company’s attorneys lodged yesterday.
—Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 5 Dec. 2025
To get there, the Norwegian explorers navigated the interminable snowfields of interior Antarctica, trudging through the harshest climates on earth for 56 days.
—Brad Japhe, HollywoodReporter, 25 Oct. 2025
Arkansas Online, 31 Mar. 2026
Instead of trudging back to the Warriors’ locker room to field the same questions, Kuminga lingered on the court postgame to mingle with old colleagues.
—Joseph Dycus, Mercury News, 22 Mar. 2026
New York City kept schools open despite angry parents trudging through snow drifts, while Philadelphia and Long Island closed as crews battle conditions.
—Jake Offenhartz, Los Angeles Times, 24 Feb. 2026
Before the fourth official even held his board up to signal Bailey’s substitution for Jadon Sancho in the 61st minute, the 28-year-old was already trudging off, carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.
—Jacob Tanswell, New York Times, 22 Feb. 2026
The rest of our fair crew is trudging along through broken wrists and CT scans.
—Kelly Lawler, USA Today, 8 Jan. 2026
The hill sits off a dirt road and takes a bit of trudging up before the dimpled geodes start appearing in earnest.
—Npr Staff, NPR, 18 Dec. 2025
Meanwhile, Paramount has shown little inclination of quietly trudging off into the sunset, as was made clear by the complaints the company’s attorneys lodged yesterday.
—Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 5 Dec. 2025
To get there, the Norwegian explorers navigated the interminable snowfields of interior Antarctica, trudging through the harshest climates on earth for 56 days.
—Brad Japhe, HollywoodReporter, 25 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for trudging
Verb
-
This is where the city stages its daily open-air show — street artists sketching portraits, fortune-tellers shuffling cards and musicians playing for appreciative crowds.—
Lauren Schuster,
Charlotte Observer,
8 Apr. 2026
-
Its elegant twill pattern is both durable for rigorous travel and premium-looking for serving looks at the airport, while its interior has an expandable compartment, one mesh pocket, and elastic tie-down straps to keep your belongings from shuffling around.—
Julia Morlino,
Travel + Leisure,
3 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Garrett Mitchell lined a tiebreaking single in the eighth inning and the Milwaukee Brewers beat the stumbling Boston Red Sox 8-6 on Monday night, sending them to their eighth loss in nine games.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
6 Apr. 2026
-
On March 22, Emily Holman posted a TikTok video about her and her 18-year-old sister, Martha, stumbling upon a jean jacket that was hand-painted and gifted to a friend for Christmas.—
Michelle Lee,
PEOPLE,
3 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
That’s the sound of clogs slowly stomping back into the spotlight.—
Andrea Zendejas,
Vogue,
5 Apr. 2026
-
For pretty much every gamer alive today, those first few notes induce an almost Pavlovian response — sparking an urge to grab a controller on your lap that isn’t actually there and bringing to mind comfortable, warm memories of stomping Goombas and riding Yoshi on a quest to save Princess Peach.—
Wilson Chapman,
IndieWire,
3 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Kazan, struggling to find a local cinematographer whose work appealed to him, lucked into hiring a living legend.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
6 Apr. 2026
-
Acquired before last year’s trade deadline from the Colorado Rockies, Bird was quickly demoted after struggling in his initial Yankee stint.—
Peter Sblendorio,
New York Daily News,
6 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Trudging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/trudging. Accessed 13 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
