1
as in pulling
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 laboring
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 tugging
When you’re done, simply pop open the large dustbin and empty debris directly into the trash—no tugging out tangled hair or gunk required.
—
Mariana Best, Better Homes & Gardens, 28 Oct. 2025
Concurrently, the events leading to Sutton’s death keep tugging at the edges of his mind.
—Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 22 Oct. 2025
Her reporting turns the accident into an albatross around their necks, tearing at their reputations and tugging at all the other skeletons in their closets.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 14 Oct. 2025
Jagger practically broke into a trot down the carpet, tugging girlfriend Melanie Hamrick along.
—Leigh Nordstrom, Footwear News, 9 Oct. 2025
Then, a black bear creeps in through the brush and begins tugging, pulling, and sinking its two-inch teeth into the carcass.
—Madison Dapcevich, Outside, 8 Oct. 2025
Guardiola was agitated that Van Hecke went to ground inside his own penalty area in a shirt-tugging duel with Erling Haaland.
—Andy Naylor, New York Times, 6 Oct. 2025
The heart-tugging comedy is a point of pride for Johansson, 40, who hopes to set an example to her kids by stepping behind the camera and chasing her dreams.
—Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 27 Sep. 2025
Somebody’s now in a headlock, and there’s a surge of packed bodies moving in a swelling tide of shirt-tugging and shouting.
—Jonathan Terrell, Rolling Stone, 23 Sep. 2025
Mariana Best, Better Homes & Gardens, 28 Oct. 2025
Concurrently, the events leading to Sutton’s death keep tugging at the edges of his mind.
—Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 22 Oct. 2025
Her reporting turns the accident into an albatross around their necks, tearing at their reputations and tugging at all the other skeletons in their closets.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 14 Oct. 2025
Jagger practically broke into a trot down the carpet, tugging girlfriend Melanie Hamrick along.
—Leigh Nordstrom, Footwear News, 9 Oct. 2025
Then, a black bear creeps in through the brush and begins tugging, pulling, and sinking its two-inch teeth into the carcass.
—Madison Dapcevich, Outside, 8 Oct. 2025
Guardiola was agitated that Van Hecke went to ground inside his own penalty area in a shirt-tugging duel with Erling Haaland.
—Andy Naylor, New York Times, 6 Oct. 2025
The heart-tugging comedy is a point of pride for Johansson, 40, who hopes to set an example to her kids by stepping behind the camera and chasing her dreams.
—Patrick Ryan, USA Today, 27 Sep. 2025
Somebody’s now in a headlock, and there’s a surge of packed bodies moving in a swelling tide of shirt-tugging and shouting.
—Jonathan Terrell, Rolling Stone, 23 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tugging
Verb
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Both candidates had coattails, pulling along fellow Democrats as Republican turnout sagged.—
David Weigel,
semafor.com,
5 Nov. 2025
-
After decades of wars in the Middle East, many American politicians, civil society organizations, and citizens advocate for pulling back, arguing that the United States can no longer serve as the world’s policeman.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
5 Nov. 2025
Verb
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The Dodgers then knocked off the Giants in the NL Division Series, though Scherzer lost his Game 3 start – allowing three hits and a run on Evan Longoria’s game-deciding homer while laboring seven innings and 110 pitches.—
Jim Alexander,
Oc Register,
26 Oct. 2025
-
With The Fulfillment, the sub-context is how clout culture is a currency, how attention itself has become a currency, just like our laboring bodies are.—
Christopher Claxton,
Billboard,
19 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
One of three monkeys that escaped after a truck hauling 21 of the animals from Tulane University in New Orleans flipped on a Mississippi interstate has been found, according to authorities.—
Greg Wehner,
FOXNews.com,
2 Nov. 2025
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Nip that sentiment in the bud by taking them out the following August for a few days of hauling fertilizer, picking rocks, wrestling farm implements, and driving tractors over unseen wasp nests.—
The Editors,
Outdoor Life,
30 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
-
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
Verb
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The latest downdraft could pull bitcoin deeper into the red, dragging the token more enduringly below the $100,000 support level, according to the analyst.—
Liz Napolitano,
CNBC,
4 Nov. 2025
-
Video shows one agent restraining the man, then dragging him around as another agent helps pin him to the ground.—
Zoe Sottile,
CNN Money,
3 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Gidwani recommends striving for a blend of aerobic (cardio) exercise and strength training to optimize mitochondrial health.—
Melissa Rudy,
FOXNews.com,
3 Nov. 2025
-
That dynamic is something Sandriver is striving to correct.—
Naomi Rougeau,
Robb Report,
2 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Of those, about 44,000 were working adults and 42,000 were working for an employer, according to the report.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
6 Nov. 2025
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Singaporean transit company ComfortDelGro, meanwhile, is working with Pony AI to explore offering robotaxis, while Lyft is collaborating with Baidu to test its Apollo Go self-driving cars in Europe.—
Sydney Lake,
Fortune,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
Others were trying to find a place in a growing narrative of American exceptionalism.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
26 Oct. 2025
-
The risk to coffee production from climate change has some researchers trying to develop more climate-resistant varieties of coffee.—
Preston Fore,
Fortune,
25 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Tugging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tugging. Accessed 8 Nov. 2025.
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