1
as in twitching
to grasp and move with a small forceful motion
Hey, you tweaked my nose!
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2
as in adjusting
to make small adjustments to
You can tweak the settings to customize the display. He spent considerable time tweaking the recipe.
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3
as in mocking
to make (someone or something) the object of criticism, amusement, or laughter
They're always tweaking me about my northern accent.
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of tweaking
The 28-year-old quarterback has dedicated much of the offseason to tweaking his footwork — putting his left foot in front of his right from the shotgun, against traditional NFL form — to fit Los Angeles’ new offensive coordinator’s scheme.
—
Assistant Sports Editor, Los Angeles Times, 18 June 2026
The Simpsons went for the three-peat the next year, when those two teams returned to the big game, tweaking a few lines to reflect the rematch.
—Dan Snierson, Entertainment Weekly, 16 June 2026
After tweaking its original proposal, the Overland Park City Council might consider changes to Black & Veatch’s tax incentive requests to help fund the multibillion-dollar development next month.
—Taylor O'Connor, Kansas City Star, 16 June 2026
Historically, that has meant tweaking a prescription drug to accommodate the needs of patients who had an allergy to an ingredient, or who couldn't swallow a pill.
—Daniel Gilbert, CBS News, 8 June 2026
Blue Origin spent 10 months tweaking the vehicle to guarantee a successful booster landing, and New Glenn’s second launch in November 2025 seemingly went off without a hitch.
—Ashley Strickland, CNN Money, 29 May 2026
The brand is tweaking its longtime motto for its new tie-up with Tinder, which was conceived for Pride Month and is aimed at celebrating love in all forms.
—Sandra Salibian, Footwear News, 27 May 2026
Thousands of hours went into producing the final version, and Vitale said the team will continue tweaking it in the coming weeks.
—Karissa Waddick, USA Today, 23 May 2026
The latest research, which includes the trajectory-tweaking gravitational effects of several satellite galaxies, indicates the odds of a collision are 50–50—a coin toss.
—Phil Plait, Scientific American, 22 May 2026
Assistant Sports Editor, Los Angeles Times, 18 June 2026
The Simpsons went for the three-peat the next year, when those two teams returned to the big game, tweaking a few lines to reflect the rematch.
—Dan Snierson, Entertainment Weekly, 16 June 2026
After tweaking its original proposal, the Overland Park City Council might consider changes to Black & Veatch’s tax incentive requests to help fund the multibillion-dollar development next month.
—Taylor O'Connor, Kansas City Star, 16 June 2026
Historically, that has meant tweaking a prescription drug to accommodate the needs of patients who had an allergy to an ingredient, or who couldn't swallow a pill.
—Daniel Gilbert, CBS News, 8 June 2026
Blue Origin spent 10 months tweaking the vehicle to guarantee a successful booster landing, and New Glenn’s second launch in November 2025 seemingly went off without a hitch.
—Ashley Strickland, CNN Money, 29 May 2026
The brand is tweaking its longtime motto for its new tie-up with Tinder, which was conceived for Pride Month and is aimed at celebrating love in all forms.
—Sandra Salibian, Footwear News, 27 May 2026
Thousands of hours went into producing the final version, and Vitale said the team will continue tweaking it in the coming weeks.
—Karissa Waddick, USA Today, 23 May 2026
The latest research, which includes the trajectory-tweaking gravitational effects of several satellite galaxies, indicates the odds of a collision are 50–50—a coin toss.
—Phil Plait, Scientific American, 22 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tweaking
Verb
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Leon Stetson was allegedly twitching, so officers moved him away from Carrie Stetson and started to render medical aid.—
Kellie Love,
Hartford Courant,
12 June 2026
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Durrell alternates between slapstick domestic high jinks, wanderings through the lush natural landscape, and increasingly ambitious investigations of biological life, from tracking twitching bacteria in pond water to the mating habits of insects.—
Rachel Syme,
New Yorker,
10 June 2026
Verb
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Discomfort often signals a gap worth adjusting.—
Mary Crossan,
Forbes.com,
23 June 2026
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Most riders understand why the trip costs more on a rainy Friday afternoon than on a quiet Sunday morning; adjusting prices for weather, traffic, or supply is a transparent way to balance a market.—
Ravi Dhar,
Fortune,
23 June 2026
Verb
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Supporters jokingly call themselves unemployed and chronically online, while videos and memes mocking unemployment, corruption and political dysfunction have attracted millions of views.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
20 June 2026
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Reese and the Dream played Indiana on Thursday as well, where Reese was caught mocking Clark by flailing around during the stoppage in play.—
Jon Root OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
20 June 2026
Verb
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Instead of kicking back, most workers are delaying their flight from the nest thanks to an affordability crisis pinching the wallets of everyday Americans.—
Emma Burleigh,
Fortune,
22 June 2026
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But the Department of Homeland Security—an organization not otherwise known for their penny-pinching nature— somehow managed to build the Transportation Security Administration’s Canine Training Center at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland for $12 million.—
Craig Hooper,
Forbes.com,
21 June 2026
Verb
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Journalists were involved in every step of the information gathering, review, editing and publishing process.—
Gabby Sartori,
USA Today,
19 June 2026
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The study found 42% of adults who used chatbots used them to search for information, 38% used it for work tasks, 25% for fun or entertainment, 24% for creating or editing images or videos, 20% for medical advice and another 20% for diet and fitness information.—
Emily Guskin,
ABC News,
18 June 2026
Verb
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The pop singer has been teasing her return to music over the past few weeks with cryptic posts on social media featuring various images accompanied locations, dates and times.—
Steven J. Horowitz,
Variety,
22 June 2026
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Eric Schmidt, the former CEO of Google, took over as chief executive of Relativity a little more than a year ago, teasing new areas of focus such as orbital data centers, philanthropic space science ventures, and national security missions.—
Stephen Clark,
ArsTechnica,
19 June 2026
Verb
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With a quick and creative offensive attack producing goals in front of stadium-shaking home crowds, the Americans have already won their group and booked their place in the knockout round.—
Jim Vertuno,
Chicago Tribune,
20 June 2026
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In a major rupture, strong shaking could cause severe damage near the fault and in areas built on soft or water-saturated soils, which can amplify shaking.—
Janet Loehrke,
USA Today,
19 June 2026
Verb
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That separation allows developers to introduce new capabilities without redesigning airframes or modifying platform-specific hardware.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
18 June 2026
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Disease-modifying therapies have demonstrated efficacy in early symptomatic disease.—
Elizabeth Bevins,
STAT,
16 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Tweaking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tweaking. Accessed 25 Jun. 2026.
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