as in pulls
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
2
as in struggles
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tugs
Verb
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But the major bowl games allow locker room access, which pulls back the curtain (literally) on what a team is really like when no one is watching.—
Pete Sampson,
The Athletic,
4 Jan. 2025 -
At the end of each show, members from the audience get to sit in a big red chair and try to tell an anecdote before Norton, or a guest, pulls a lever that flips them backward.—
Anna Russell,
The New Yorker,
3 Jan. 2025
Verb
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Additionally, the jail struggles to provide adequate food, and unsanitary food distribution practices have left detainees vulnerable to malnutrition, pest infestations and other harms.—
Dan Perry,
Newsweek,
4 Jan. 2025
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But Moore sometimes struggles to take responsibility in the way expected of leaders.—
Colin Pascal,
Baltimore Sun,
2 Jan. 2025
Verb
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Eggers and his go-to production designer Craig Lathrop also put a unique emphasis on building realistic worlds—their production design strives extra hard to close gaps between Eggers’s olden aesthetic and the modern audience’s perception.—
Maya Ibbitson,
Architectural Digest,
23 Dec. 2024
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The company strives to be more than just a pet product brand.—
FunnyFuzzy Contributor,
Forbes,
23 Dec. 2024
Verb
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The former calls for a counterfactual view of how testing works; the latter calls for political will and policy ideas not currently in evidence.—
Peter Greene,
Forbes,
30 Nov. 2024
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The office also works with the Connecticut State Police Fire and Explosion Investigation Unit, which investigates the cause and origin of fires and arson.—
Sean Krofssik,
Hartford Courant,
30 Nov. 2024
Verb
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Jackson tries to see 15 to 20 people at each facility during her monthly visits.—
Jess Huff,
Austin American-Statesman,
27 Dec. 2024
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Still, Ana tries to focus on training and putting together a stellar routine worthy of national success.—
Madeline Mitchell,
The Enquirer,
26 Dec. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Tugs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tugs. Accessed 22 Jul. 2025.
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