1
as in shuffling
to move heavily or clumsily
flooded residents who were forced to trudge through waist-deep water
Synonyms & Similar Words
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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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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of trudging
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 bus drivers do nothing to enforce the rules, and we seniors are left trudging down the bus aisle while the people in the seats smirk, look at their phones and talk to each other.
—Judith Martin, Mercury News, 20 Jan. 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
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
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 bus drivers do nothing to enforce the rules, and we seniors are left trudging down the bus aisle while the people in the seats smirk, look at their phones and talk to each other.
—Judith Martin, Mercury News, 20 Jan. 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
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for trudging
Verb
-
Around town, writers and directors went about their work with a kind of grim acceptance, like a farmer shuffling to his plow even as the tornado clouds above grow darker.—
Steven Zeitchik,
HollywoodReporter,
23 Feb. 2026
-
This best-selling pair is ideal for mornings shuffling around the kitchen, foggy walks to the mailbox, and sitting through entire days of Zoom meetings.—
Annie Blackman,
InStyle,
21 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Mercader pushed Trotsky to the floor and, running and stumbling, escaped from the room.—
Josh Ireland,
Harpers Magazine,
24 Feb. 2026
-
He’s saved by a drunken Ser Arlan, who comes stumbling into the alley and instinctively follows his knightly code to defend the innocent.—
Noel Murray,
Vulture,
16 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The goal will change depending on the game — whether that’s collecting tokens, moving pieces on a board, stomping Goombas, or putting a ball in a hoop hanging 10 feet above the ground.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
20 Feb. 2026
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Han will be posted up by the Milennium Falcon and/or Oga’s Cantina, Luke will be stomping his Chanel boots in the marketplace, and Darth Vader will be force-choking dads in Grumpy tees.—
Bethy Squires,
Vulture,
14 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
In the aftermath of the 2007-09 Great Recession, Warsh — then a Fed governor — objected to some of the central bank’s efforts to help the struggling economy by pushing down rates even though unemployment exceeded 9%.—
Paul Wiseman,
Los Angeles Times,
2 Mar. 2026
-
Meanwhile, the United Nations wrote on X that major cities in Afghanistan were reportedly bombed by the Pakistani military on Friday, marking a new escalation and raising fears for civilians already struggling under the harsh rule of the Taliban authorities.—
MUNIR AHMED,
Arkansas Online,
1 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Trudging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/trudging. Accessed 3 Mar. 2026.
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