as in to lick
to strike repeatedly
the mob boss's thugs really worked him over
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of work over
All three were created by the Equal Justice Initiative, a nonprofit legal organization founded in 1989 that has expanded into narrative and public-history work over the past decade and a half under the leadership of its founder and executive director, Bryan Stevenson.
—
Clint Smith, The Atlantic, 19 Jan. 2026
Nothing demonstrates this better than repeatedly coming back to an artist’s work over a period of years.
—Benjamin Lima
special Contributor, Dallas Morning News, 17 Jan. 2026
Despite attempts by several Iranian governments to ban and bowdlerize his work over the last century, the ghost of Hedayat has maintained its grip on Iranian literature.
—Amir Ahmadi Arian, The Dial, 15 Jan. 2026
In front of a crowd of close to 150 people, students and The Charlotte Observer staff photographers were honored for their work over the past year.
—Melissa Melvin-Rodriguez, Charlotte Observer, 15 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for work over
Clint Smith, The Atlantic, 19 Jan. 2026
Nothing demonstrates this better than repeatedly coming back to an artist’s work over a period of years.
—Benjamin Lima
special Contributor, Dallas Morning News, 17 Jan. 2026
Despite attempts by several Iranian governments to ban and bowdlerize his work over the last century, the ghost of Hedayat has maintained its grip on Iranian literature.
—Amir Ahmadi Arian, The Dial, 15 Jan. 2026
In front of a crowd of close to 150 people, students and The Charlotte Observer staff photographers were honored for their work over the past year.
—Melissa Melvin-Rodriguez, Charlotte Observer, 15 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for work over
Recent Examples of Synonyms for work over
Verb
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Mitch West, meanwhile, was licking his wounds on Monday night, when snow still hadn’t touched down in his region of South Carolina.—
Brady Brickner-Wood,
New Yorker,
28 Jan. 2026
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England’s Test team are still licking their wounds after their humbling Down Under.—
Sam Dalling,
New York Times,
23 Jan. 2026
Verb
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As my colleague Adam Serwer has written, many Minnesotans are engaging in protests and efforts to deliver food and supplies to families in hiding.—
Julie Beck,
The Atlantic,
31 Jan. 2026
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Asked whether the 2-0 derby defeat to Manchester United at Old Trafford on January 17 might have gone a different way had Diogo Dalot been red-carded in the 11th minute for a knee-high foul on Jeremy Doku, Guardiola was insistent that his Manchester City team could not hide behind the decision.—
Sam Lee,
New York Times,
31 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Russia has been pounding Ukraine's critical infrastructure, hoping to wear down public resistance to the war while leaving many around the country having to endure the dead of winter without heat.—
AAMER MADHANI AND SUSIE BLANN THE ASSOCIATED PRESS,
Arkansas Online,
30 Jan. 2026
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For now, however, the first part of the season mostly succeeds at balancing power dynamics and pulse-pounding romance, with a major assist from the warm and hot chemistry between season leads Luke Thompson and series newbie Yerin Ha.—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
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San Benito County Sheriff Eric Taylor took to social media Thursday to lash out at bystanders who record police encounters and critics of law enforcement, following a violent Wednesday crime spree that ended with a suspect dead and a police officer wounded.—
Robert Salonga,
Mercury News,
23 Jan. 2026
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But the evidence suggests that people who rely on bursts of venting tend to stay angrier for longer, and are more likely to lash out aggressively.—
Will Barker,
TheWeek,
22 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Coming from both the Sun and also omnidirectionally from elsewhere across the Universe, these cosmic rays all behaved the same way normal particles do on Earth, except were at significantly greater energies.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
30 Jan. 2026
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Some of Thursday’s decline was related to Wall Street not being happy with how much the company was spending on investments for the future (capital expenditures), and the cloud business Azure may not have done as well as some hoped.—
Jason Gewirtz,
CNBC,
30 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Journalist Don Lemon was released from custody Friday after he was arrested and hit with federal civil rights charges over his coverage of an anti-immigration enforcement protest that disrupted a service at a Minnesota church.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
31 Jan. 2026
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But of all the spaghetti that got thrown at the wall, this is the one that hits for reasons that are totally orthogonal to politics and sort of Washington.—
Ben Smith,
semafor.com,
31 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The horn section sounds deep and crisp, punching out riffs on Kupka’s brawny bari foundation.—
Andrew Gilbert,
Mercury News,
21 Jan. 2026
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But two plays later, Drake Maye was lunging forward on a run and had the ball punched out.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
18 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Sure, some out there were robbing old people, choking people, robbing them, beating them up, taking their money, but Troy just wasn’t like that.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 Jan. 2026
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Jalen Brunson scored 28 points and the New York Knicks dominated the fourth quarter to beat the Sacramento Kings 103-87 on Tuesday night for their third straight victory.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
28 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Work over.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/work%20over. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
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