1
as in pulled
to cause to follow by applying steady force on
tugged on the door until it opened
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in struggled
to devote serious and sustained effort
she's tugged all her life to get to where she is now in the business world
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of tugged
His young daughter tugged at him.
—
Christine Ro, Forbes.com, 12 June 2026
The rookie tryout cornerback repeatedly tugged on undrafted rookie wide receiver Omari Kelly’s jersey as Kelly ran a go route up the left sideline.
—Chicago Tribune, 11 May 2026
When Wembanyama then grabbed the ensuing rebound right over Reid, Minnesota’s Jaden McDaniels came in and tugged down on Wembanyama’s jersey from behind, then held onto his off arm.
—Jared Weiss, New York Times, 11 May 2026
Sure, the sequence largely swipes away hints given prior that Bowser was an absent father, but in a film where most of the characters veer toward the blandly nice, watching a dad and his son bond over their same sociopathic tendencies was the only moment that tugged at the heartstrings.
—Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 31 Mar. 2026
Smoldering at the camera, the star—who’s currently dating Scooter Braun—tugged down the straps of the plum-chocolate bra and covered her chest with her hands.
—Lara Walsh, InStyle, 7 Mar. 2026
From life’s first moments, multiplying cells are squished, stretched, and tugged to form tissues that bend and twist into organs that expand and contract.
—Clare Watson, Quanta Magazine, 27 Feb. 2026
And when Sky and Virginia were playing in a backyard sandpit one day, her little brother tugged on her T-shirt, pointing toward a snake.
—Laura Trujillo, USA Today, 21 Feb. 2026
Yelkur ranked Google’s Gemini commercial about imagining a new home as one of the most emotionally appealing, likeable ads that tugged at the heartstrings.
—Lorena O’Neil, Rolling Stone, 10 Feb. 2026
Christine Ro, Forbes.com, 12 June 2026
The rookie tryout cornerback repeatedly tugged on undrafted rookie wide receiver Omari Kelly’s jersey as Kelly ran a go route up the left sideline.
—Chicago Tribune, 11 May 2026
When Wembanyama then grabbed the ensuing rebound right over Reid, Minnesota’s Jaden McDaniels came in and tugged down on Wembanyama’s jersey from behind, then held onto his off arm.
—Jared Weiss, New York Times, 11 May 2026
Sure, the sequence largely swipes away hints given prior that Bowser was an absent father, but in a film where most of the characters veer toward the blandly nice, watching a dad and his son bond over their same sociopathic tendencies was the only moment that tugged at the heartstrings.
—Wilson Chapman, IndieWire, 31 Mar. 2026
Smoldering at the camera, the star—who’s currently dating Scooter Braun—tugged down the straps of the plum-chocolate bra and covered her chest with her hands.
—Lara Walsh, InStyle, 7 Mar. 2026
From life’s first moments, multiplying cells are squished, stretched, and tugged to form tissues that bend and twist into organs that expand and contract.
—Clare Watson, Quanta Magazine, 27 Feb. 2026
And when Sky and Virginia were playing in a backyard sandpit one day, her little brother tugged on her T-shirt, pointing toward a snake.
—Laura Trujillo, USA Today, 21 Feb. 2026
Yelkur ranked Google’s Gemini commercial about imagining a new home as one of the most emotionally appealing, likeable ads that tugged at the heartstrings.
—Lorena O’Neil, Rolling Stone, 10 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tugged
Verb
-
Detmers was still 15 pitches shy of his season-high when Suzuki pulled him.—
Jeff Fletcher,
Oc Register,
11 June 2026
-
The righty was later pulled after allowing singles to the first two batters of the fifth inning, both of whom later scored and counted against Morris’ statline.—
Sean Campbell,
Sacbee.com,
10 June 2026
Verb
-
Jalen Brunson has 19 points to lead New York, but the Knicks have struggled to avoid fouls on defense and struggled to make foul shots on the other end.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
11 June 2026
-
Rushing out onto the beach, George struggled to comprehend what had happened.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
11 June 2026
Verb
-
In 1913, the Pennsylvania Game Commission arranged to have fifty elk wrangled out of Yellowstone National Park, hauled back to Pennsylvania by rail, and turned loose.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
10 June 2026
-
My parents got the school involved, and the ringleaders were hauled into the vice principal’s office.—
Lauren Brown West-Rosenthal,
Parents,
5 June 2026
Verb
-
Stephen Kolek labored through the first three innings for Kansas City, delivering 55 pitches and allowing six baserunners, but stranded four.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
10 June 2026
-
Introduced in the 1970s, when the country labored under a military dictatorship, the policy sought to impose a ‘Brazil-first’ approach to new developments in computing and data-processing.—
Kamal Ahmed,
Fortune,
4 June 2026
Verb
-
Even fever can’t keep him down, as the 27-year-old dragged himself off the bench at half-time to score a brace and change the game in a 3-2 comeback triumph at Torino on Monday.—
Jack Bantock,
New York Times,
12 Dec. 2025
-
The chute dragged the skydiver backward, knocking the camera operator off the plane and into free fall.—
Mithil Aggarwal,
NBC news,
12 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
Luis Urbie worked as an armed CBP officer and immigration officer at the time of each incident and was assigned to the O'Hare Airport.—
Jeramie Bizzle,
CBS News,
9 Dec. 2025
-
Joining them will be Kourani’s brother, Hadi Kourani, who worked for three years on Detroit-area Cousins Maine Lobster trucks and introduced the pair to the concept.—
Cheryl V. Jackson,
IndyStar,
9 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
During his short time in office, Garfield endeavored to clean up the government.—
Allison DeGrushe,
Entertainment Weekly,
6 Nov. 2025
-
Tom Scarpello, Revology Cars’ founder and CEO, has endeavored to create an uncompromised modern driving experience, despite the 60-year-old starting point these Ford Mustangs represent.—
Karl Brauer,
Forbes.com,
2 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Tugged.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tugged. Accessed 17 Jun. 2026.
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