tug 1 of 2

noun

Definition of tugnext
as in pull
the act or an instance of applying force on something so that it moves in the direction of the force gave the man in front a tug on his shirtsleeve as a sign that he was supposed to step aside

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

tug

2 of 2

verb

ˈtəg How to pronounce tug (audio)
1
as in to pull
to cause to follow by applying steady force on tugged on the door until it opened

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to struggle
to devote serious and sustained effort she's tugged all her life to get to where she is now in the business world

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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 tug
Noun
Firefly Aerospace started as a launch company and now builds Moon landers and space tugs. — Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 11 Sep. 2026 Brushes with beads that tug at your strands and feel rough on the scalp? — Gina Vaynshteyn, StyleCaster, 31 Aug. 2026
Verb
In Gold Hill, Sullivan's brother-in-law solved the bear-in-Toyota problem by tugging a rope tied to a door handle. — ABC News, 8 Sep. 2026 In Gold Hill, Sullivan’s brother-in-law solved the bear-in-Toyota problem by tugging a rope tied to a door handle. — Brittany Peterson, Fortune, 8 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for tug
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tug
  1. pull
  2. haul
  3. struggle
  4. yank
  5. drag
  6. labor
  7. jerk
  8. strive
Noun
  • Somewhere between a jegging and a jean exist these Liverpool Los Angeles pants, which have a comfy elastic, pull-on waist in lieu of a zipper and button closure.
    — Annie Blackman, InStyle, 29 Sep. 2026
  • The collection explores the disorienting pull of a space that makes its visitors lose their sense of self.
    — Lily Templeton, Footwear News, 29 Sep. 2026
Definition of pull
Verb
  • Four of the 14 were arrested in an attempt to haul bundles of cash out of the home of the attorney general and into the back of an ambulance, Interior Minister Marco Antonio Oviedo said.
    — Samantha Schmidt, Washington Post, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Every chip and solar panel has to be hauled into orbit, and every answer those chips produce has to come back down.
    — Peter Hall, Scientific American, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of haul
Verb
  • At that time, the company’s Fisher-Price, Barbie and American Girl brands were struggling to connect with changing consumer tastes and Mattel was reeling from the recent bankruptcy of Toys R Us.
    — Sarah Whitten, CNBC, 3 Oct. 2026
  • But, like many Universities, Drexel has been struggling financially, in part due to declining enrollment.
    — Andrew Stelzer, NPR, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of struggle
Noun
  • Smudge, yank, squash and draw on photos to create one-of-a-kind masterpieces meant to be shared.
    — Jennifer Maas, Variety, 19 Aug. 2026
  • The yanks are coming, the yanks are coming!
    — Kirk Bowman, The Conversation, 9 June 2026
Definition of yank
Verb
  • Both buyers and sellers remain trapped in a wait and see stance, further dragging on a US housing market that has been stagnant for nearly four years.
    — , CNBC, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Many outside analysts think that the conflict will drag on for longer and end with negotiations rather than with a clear winner.
    — Ali Vaez, Foreign Affairs, 29 Sep. 2026
Definition of drag
Verb
  • For someone with perhaps the most famous grunge lineage of all, Frances Bean Cobain has never needed to labor the reference.
    — Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 24 Sep. 2026
  • McNeely’s portrait of a laboring mother, swathed in glowing fields of chartreuse, outshines (again, literally) art history’s greats.
    — Emily Watlington, ARTnews.com, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of labor
Noun
  • Bella’s childhood friend Angus (Jake Simmance), a corporate jerk, condescendingly probes Johnny about his career.
    — Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 2 Oct. 2026
  • There was significant excitement over the first-look footage revealing perhaps the world’s biggest movie star transforming himself to become a portly, gray-haired jerk in an offbeat feature focusing on climate change.
    — Ryan Gajewski, HollywoodReporter, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of jerk
Verb
  • But while the creators of AI strive to set guardrails, the building of the infrastructure for the technology continues.
    — Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 29 Sep. 2026
  • In a poetic blend of reality and imagination, a vivacious Brooklyn teenager strives to reclaim her own fleeting childhood while helping raise her four younger sisters.
    — Chris Gardner, HollywoodReporter, 29 Sep. 2026
Definition of strive

Browse Nearby Words

tufts
tug
tugboat
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Cite this Entry

“Tug.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tug. Accessed 4 Oct. 2026.

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