1
as in shuffling
to move heavily or clumsily
flooded residents who were forced to trudge through waist-deep water
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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
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Recent Examples of trudging
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
While the federal government shutdown has been trudging along, a cottage in the Grand Canyon Village has provided for those in need following weeks of no pay and a devastating wildfire.
—Jose R. Gonzalez, AZCentral.com, 24 Oct. 2025
Ohio State’s win against Texas is still fine, but the Longhorns have looked disappointing, too, after trudging through a 27-10 win against UTEP.
—Chris Vannini, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2025
In the engaging trailer that continues the sinister tale of Vault-Tec, The Ghoul arrives in New Vegas alongside Lucy MacLean (Ella Purnell) and Dogmeat, trudging into the outskirts of New Vegas.
—Jeff Spry, Space.com, 22 Aug. 2025
Without a doubt there are people who would pay serious money to see Jeffrey Katzenberg hanging out and trudging through the sand and dirt at Burning Man.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 22 Aug. 2025
They were left operating on fumes by the end, with Ollie Watkins — Duran’s replacement — starved of service and Morgan Rogers consigned to trudging off the pitch, knowing his long dribbling bursts would have scant options ahead of him.
—Jacob Tanswell, The Athletic, 27 Dec. 2024
Standard time brings more sunshine to earlier hours, insuring that children are not trudging to school in cold-weather darkness.
—David K. Li, NBC News, 22 Dec. 2024
The Dakota boots are armored in waterproof rubber and have a rugged outsole, so trudging through sleet and snow is no issue.
—Emily Weaver, People.com, 14 Dec. 2024
Brad Japhe, HollywoodReporter, 25 Oct. 2025
While the federal government shutdown has been trudging along, a cottage in the Grand Canyon Village has provided for those in need following weeks of no pay and a devastating wildfire.
—Jose R. Gonzalez, AZCentral.com, 24 Oct. 2025
Ohio State’s win against Texas is still fine, but the Longhorns have looked disappointing, too, after trudging through a 27-10 win against UTEP.
—Chris Vannini, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2025
In the engaging trailer that continues the sinister tale of Vault-Tec, The Ghoul arrives in New Vegas alongside Lucy MacLean (Ella Purnell) and Dogmeat, trudging into the outskirts of New Vegas.
—Jeff Spry, Space.com, 22 Aug. 2025
Without a doubt there are people who would pay serious money to see Jeffrey Katzenberg hanging out and trudging through the sand and dirt at Burning Man.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 22 Aug. 2025
They were left operating on fumes by the end, with Ollie Watkins — Duran’s replacement — starved of service and Morgan Rogers consigned to trudging off the pitch, knowing his long dribbling bursts would have scant options ahead of him.
—Jacob Tanswell, The Athletic, 27 Dec. 2024
Standard time brings more sunshine to earlier hours, insuring that children are not trudging to school in cold-weather darkness.
—David K. Li, NBC News, 22 Dec. 2024
The Dakota boots are armored in waterproof rubber and have a rugged outsole, so trudging through sleet and snow is no issue.
—Emily Weaver, People.com, 14 Dec. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for trudging
Verb
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The technology included corrupt automatic shuffling machines that read cards and predicted which player had the best hand.—
Preston Fore,
Fortune,
25 Oct. 2025
-
Card-reading contact lenses, X-ray poker tables, trays of poker chips that read cards, hacked shuffling machines that predict hands.—
Rob Wile,
NBC news,
24 Oct. 2025
Verb
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After stumbling into a massive camp full of refugees from Nilfgaard’s ongoing campaign, Geralt winds up witness to a witch trial.—
Scott Meslow,
Vulture,
30 Oct. 2025
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According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, CWD can take months to years for symptoms to appear, which could include drastic weight loss, stumbling or lack of coordination, drooling and listlessness.—
Caroline Neal,
Louisville Courier Journal,
30 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The sound of her stomping up the staircase causes her parents to share a look of weary consternation.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
20 Oct. 2025
-
But only the faithful know everything about the Mushroom Kingdom’s shell-stomping messiah.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
18 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Advertisement Her victory also carries national implications for Democrats, who are struggling to chart a path between progressive energy and centrist caution ahead of the 2026 midterms.—
Nik Popli,
Time,
5 Nov. 2025
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Always Greener, which scored 15 nominations on the annual Brit List, is a high concept script that follows a struggling artist, haunted by past failure, who is given a one-in-a-million chance to become his rich and successful doppelganger from a parallel universe.—
Max Goldbart,
Deadline,
5 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Trudging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/trudging. Accessed 7 Nov. 2025.
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