yank 1 of 2

noun

Definition of yanknext
as in pull
the act or an instance of applying force on something so that it moves in the direction of the force had to give the shoe a good yank to get it off

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

yank

2 of 2

verb

ˈyaŋk How to pronounce yank (audio)
1
as in to jerk
to move or cause to move with a sharp quick motion she stupidly yanked the wheel while I was driving

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2
as in to pull
to draw out by force or with effort yanked out a tooth with a pair of pliers

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to grab
to separate or remove by forceful pulling grab the other one, and let's see if we can't yank these two grocery carriages apart

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 yank
Noun
Soy sauce, Maggi seasoning, daikon and shiitake mushroom yank pot roast into new territory. — Scott Hocker, TheWeek, 24 Mar. 2026 Effectively, this turned the workspace into a yank buffer along with all your documents, and undoing any destructive editing operation thus became merely another cut and paste. — Cameron Kaiser, ArsTechnica, 12 Sep. 2025
Verb
The jury was whittled down significantly after days of questioning over 100 Clark County residents who’d been yanked from their daily lives and summoned to a Las Vegas courtroom. — Zoe Sottile, CNN Money, 13 Aug. 2026 The officer is also seen putting a woman in a patrol car — the same woman who is shown on the ground having her hair yanked by an officer. — Marvin Hurst, CBS News, 7 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for yank
Recent Examples of Synonyms for yank
  1. pull
  2. jerk
  3. pluck
  4. grab
  5. tug
  6. twitch
  7. extract
  8. rip
Noun
  • But the pull is strong, because one aspect of the long walk has not changed since 1990—that beautiful simplicity, which remains as essential to the experience as ever.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 18 Aug. 2026
  • Layden says her career change stemmed from a pull toward nursing as well as a push away from the volatility and outdated norms of the corporate world.
    — Sarah Jackson, CNBC, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of pull
Verb
  • But in 1933, within a matter of days, they were jerked back into reality.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 12 Aug. 2026
  • Stuttering lines, on the left, jerking up and down, denote the rattle of guns; on the right, the lines are all but flat, as silence descends.
    — Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of jerk
Verb
  • The streamer has found its leading lady for the biopic, plucking an unknown first-timer to play the sertanejo icon.
    — Stewart Clarke, Deadline, 17 Aug. 2026
  • Just walk out the back door, pluck a warm peach off the tree, and try to think of a more quintessentially summer experience.
    — Heather Bien, Southern Living, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of pluck
Verb
  • After grabbing an early 83-81 lead in overtime, the Dream gave up eight straight points to the Fever, who never lost the lead in overtime again, although the Dream got within two points, 93-91, with 10 seconds left.
    — Micahya Costen, AJC.com, 17 Aug. 2026
  • The little breaths, the cloth grabs and punches were all deliberate.
    — Simon Thompson, HollywoodReporter, 17 Aug. 2026
Definition of grab
Noun
  • The games consisted of various team activities, including tug of war, dodgeball, kickball, as well as individual endurance tests and an obstacle course.
    — Matthew Kelly, Kansas City Star, 12 Aug. 2026
  • The perfect dog needed to love balls or tug toys, be neurotic and extremely obsessive.
    — Becca Savransky, Idaho Statesman, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of tug
Verb
  • The muscles in Lola Petticrew’s face twitch ever so slightly, indicating Catherine’s excitement that the police are now in possession of this picture.
    — Erin Qualey, Vulture, 3 Aug. 2026
  • Green said his symptoms began when his feet started twitching in his sleep.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 30 July 2026
Definition of twitch
Verb
  • However, measures in place to limit the spread, such as regular handwashing and social distancing, are not followed at the artisanal mining sites, where work to extract gold is done by workers using basic hand tools like shovels and pans.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 19 Aug. 2026
  • Hoffman was born in Brooklyn, one of 10 children in an ultra-Orthodox Jewish community, and raised in Montreal after her Canadian mother extracted the family.
    — Elisabeth Garber-Paul, Rolling Stone, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of extract
Verb
  • In the fifth, Bregman ripped a sweeper from Jake Bird into the visitors' bullpen in left for a three-run shot to cap the Cubs' four-run inning.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 13 Aug. 2026
  • Winds ripped gutters from cottages where staff members live during the school year and tore the face from a clock tower that has stood at the school since its founding more than a century ago.
    — Lila Hempel-Edgers, Chicago Tribune, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of rip

Browse Nearby Words

yammers
yank
yanked
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Cite this Entry

“Yank.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/yank. Accessed 19 Aug. 2026.

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