Thesaurus results for WORMED

wormed

verb

past tense of worm

as in encroached

to advance gradually beyond the usual or desirable limits neighborhoods worming into lands reserved for wildlife

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

as in infiltrated

to introduce in a gradual, secret, or clever way over a period of several years, the undercover agent was able to worm his way into the drug kingpin's confidence

Synonyms & Similar Words

as in crept

to move slowly with the body close to the ground the cat silently wormed along the ground as it snuck up on the bird

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of wormed The idea wormed its way through the State Fair machinery, and with a month and a half to go until gates opened, EatFuti heard they’d be allowed to test a pilot program. — Courtney Crowder, Des Moines Register, 14 Aug. 2026 Gemini has wormed its way into virtually every Google product and service, powering email organization in Gmail, document summary in Drive, and much more. — ArsTechnica, 11 Aug. 2026 Like parasites, those jukebox musicals wormed their way into Broadway and slowly killed the medium. — Jesse Eisenberg, New Yorker, 20 July 2026 OpenAI’s ChatGPT has wormed its way into more and more parts of consumers’ lives, from work to their children’s education, and even mental health and romantic relationships. — Will McCurdy, PC Magazine, 16 May 2026 The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills alum initially believed that the bug, which eluded detection and caused countless medical issues, wormed its way into her system while filming Bravo's The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip in Morocco in early 2023. — Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 19 Feb. 2026 We as a community contain (often brain-wormed) multitudes, as evidenced by this year’s plethora gay Halloween costumes. — Abby Monteil, Them., 31 Oct. 2025 After a scramble from Baltimore’s corner kick, Kerr’s header at the back post wormed through a thicket of defenders, and Cuthbert had the final touch. — Cerys Jones, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2025 This story has wormed its way into all levels of British cultural output. — Will Collins, The Washington Examiner, 19 Sep. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for wormed

Verb

In what his dad (Ed Harris) calls the decline of humanity, the club is being encroached on by pickleballers clamoring for more courts.

— Christine Ledbetter, Chicago Tribune, 7 Aug. 2026
But the somatosensory cortex, the touch cortex, has like encroached upon it.

— Quanta Magazine, Quanta Magazine, 6 Aug. 2026

Definition of encroached

Verb

Texans have always seemed to relish their otherness, maybe even more so now that, in our age of globalization, so much sameness has infiltrated most American and international cities.

— Christine Lennon, Condé Nast Traveler, 30 Aug. 2026
Musk’s officials infiltrated department after department, canceling contracts, firing employees, viewing sensitive data, and kneecapping programs related to diversity, equity, and inclusion, as well as foreign aid.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 26 Aug. 2026

Definition of infiltrated

Verb

The location opened Monday, welcoming a consistent rush of customers into the space, even as the afternoon waned and crept into the neither-lunch-nor-dinner hours.

— Jenna Thompson, Kansas City Star, 2 Sep. 2026
Tech has crept into every facet of everyday life, like an invisible fog of ones and zeros.

— Hillary Busis, Vanity Fair, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of crept

Verb

Those margins raise the prospect that similar language could be inserted into any further budget deals without triggering opposition.

— John Timmer, ArsTechnica, 2 Sep. 2026
In Tokyo, sandwiches are advertised with an image in which the bagel seems to be made of cobwebs and contains a tuna salad that appears to have been inserted via a piping bag.

— David Mack, CNN Money, 2 Sep. 2026

Definition of inserted

Verb

Zscaler — The cloud security company's stock slipped nearly 2% despite its earnings beat.

— Michelle Fox, CNBC, 4 Sep. 2026
The Office Romance star slipped on a stack of Fope’s gold mesh bracelets, topping off her ensemble with a Chanel handbag and Cartier earrings from the jeweler’s signature Panthère collection.

— Hannah Malach, InStyle, 3 Sep. 2026

Definition of slipped

Verb

But the real action was in line for the Breen meet and greet, which snaked across the lobby of the Regal’s mezzanine level after the second screening.

— Becca Rothfeld, New Yorker, 29 Aug. 2026
The historic flood that snaked its way through Central Indiana over the weekend shook the region, damaging homes, businesses and roads as portions of White River crested up to 24 feet.

— Marissa Meador, IndyStar, 16 Aug. 2026

Definition of snaked

Verb

The couple snuck off the next weekend and got married on May 30, 1966 at the Ringgold Baptist Church in Ringgold, Ga.

— Hannah Sacks, PEOPLE, 26 Aug. 2026
While Bad Sisters snuck a nuanced portrait of sisterhood into a frantic whodunit, Youth lets its characters steep in the weirdness of ordinary life.

— Joy Press, Vanity Fair, 24 Aug. 2026

Definition of sneaked

Browse Nearby Words

worm

wormed

wormhole

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“Wormed.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wormed. Accessed 7 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of wormed

verb

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