1
as in pulling
to cause to follow by applying steady force on
tugged on the door until it opened
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
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 that happens, the quads start tugging on your patellar tendon, a band of tissue that joins the kneecap with the shin bone, causing pain there, Ginader explains.
—
Jenny McCoy, Outside, 28 Sep. 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
The most heart-tugging acceptance speech was given by the witty and whip-smart Juliette Hohnen (Douglas Elliman) who won the award for Celebrity Property Portfolio.
—Hadley Meares, HollywoodReporter, 18 Sep. 2025
This time, the dogs only experienced each toy’s function (either tugging or fetching) during play; they were not taught words for any of them.
—Anirban Mukhopadhyay, Scientific American, 18 Sep. 2025
Something must force the system into the new state, just like the woman gently tugging on Zeeman’s catastrophe machine.
—Gregory Barber, Quanta Magazine, 15 Sep. 2025
Of course, amid the drama tugging at viewers’ heartstrings, the show will, in following 9-1-1 tradition, feature larger-than-life rescues, including of one tech billionaire (played by Mark Consuelos) who is swallowed by a whale.
—Natalie Oganesyan, Deadline, 6 Sep. 2025
The wind howled, rattling metal signs and tugging at our clothes as the dust swallowed everything in sight.
—Shaun McKinnon, AZCentral.com, 2 Sep. 2025
Jenny McCoy, Outside, 28 Sep. 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
The most heart-tugging acceptance speech was given by the witty and whip-smart Juliette Hohnen (Douglas Elliman) who won the award for Celebrity Property Portfolio.
—Hadley Meares, HollywoodReporter, 18 Sep. 2025
This time, the dogs only experienced each toy’s function (either tugging or fetching) during play; they were not taught words for any of them.
—Anirban Mukhopadhyay, Scientific American, 18 Sep. 2025
Something must force the system into the new state, just like the woman gently tugging on Zeeman’s catastrophe machine.
—Gregory Barber, Quanta Magazine, 15 Sep. 2025
Of course, amid the drama tugging at viewers’ heartstrings, the show will, in following 9-1-1 tradition, feature larger-than-life rescues, including of one tech billionaire (played by Mark Consuelos) who is swallowed by a whale.
—Natalie Oganesyan, Deadline, 6 Sep. 2025
The wind howled, rattling metal signs and tugging at our clothes as the dust swallowed everything in sight.
—Shaun McKinnon, AZCentral.com, 2 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tugging
Verb
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Shepp announced that Veal earned the rare Girl Scout Saving Award, an accolade reserved for monumental acts of bravery; Veal, along with her mother, helped save the life of a Sand City Beach fisherman who lost his footing and collapsed, pulling him ashore.—
Brock Keeling,
Oc Register,
30 Sep. 2025
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The profile image on the chat features a behind-the-scenes snapshot of Bailey with his on-screen brothers Luke Newton (Colin Bridgerton) and Luke Thompson (Benedict Bridgerton) pulling silly faces.—
Olivia-Anne Cleary,
Time,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
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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
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While such a scenario sounds potentially maudlin and manipulative, Lucero — who wrote the film from a personal place — never allows that to happen by making the characters complex and flawed, and laboring under real-life issues.—
Randy Myers,
Mercury News,
12 Sep. 2025
Verb
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View gallery - 4 images Belgium's Bike43 has revealed a nifty cargo ebike that can grow as your family or hauling needs change.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
3 Oct. 2025
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That included branding civil rights advocacy and speech defamatory, a breach of the peace, or hate speech, and hauling activists into courts and jails.—
Time,
Time,
29 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Maybe new additions will boost a struggling position group.—
Antonio Morales,
New York Times,
1 Oct. 2025
-
The ever-paranoid Ally believes all of these headscratchers are part of a Trumpian conspiracy that's out to get her, but audiences were left struggling to connect the dots.—
James Mercadante,
Entertainment Weekly,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
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For Thiago’s second goal midway through the first half, Ouattara ambled back towards his own goal down the centre of the pitch, dragging Shaw and Dorgu with him.—
Conor O'Neill,
New York Times,
29 Sep. 2025
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The clip ends with the owner managing to open the door—dragging the golden retriever along with it—as their other pets enter the frame to see them off.—
Melissa Fleur Afshar,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 Sep. 2025
Verb
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This is especially true for the young Latine children and families who are striving to learn the local language and customs of a country that’s already waging war against them.—
Priscilla Blossom,
Time,
2 Oct. 2025
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Utah’s state government posted a message on its website this week that officials are monitoring events in Washington connected with national park funding and are striving to protect the national parks in Utah.—
Jeanne Bonner,
CNN Money,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The department is working with an independent monitor to implement reforms and improve accountability.—
Monroe Trombly,
Louisville Courier Journal,
2 Oct. 2025
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To promote what executives described as modern ways of working, Elanco changed blueprint plans several times over the course of half a decade.—
Alysa Guffey,
IndyStar,
2 Oct. 2025
Verb
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What are Louisville and Kentucky leaders trying to achieve with all the road work downtown?—
Leo Bertucci,
Louisville Courier Journal,
5 Oct. 2025
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Reliever Luke Weaver melted down again, and then seemed lost trying to explain it postgame.—
Brendan Kuty,
New York Times,
5 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Tugging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tugging. Accessed 7 Oct. 2025.
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