1
as in jerked
to move or cause to move with a sharp quick motion
she stupidly yanked the wheel while I was driving
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in pulled
to draw out by force or with effort
yanked out a tooth with a pair of pliers
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in grabbed
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
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 yanked
Severino allowed back-to-back singles with one out in the fourth and was yanked for reliever Elvis Alvarado.
—
Chad Bishop, AJC.com, 1 Apr. 2026
Zach Neto and Nolan Schanuel drew walks, sandwiched around a Trout single, and then Soler yanked a three-run double down the left field line.
—Jeff Fletcher, Oc Register, 29 Mar. 2026
Minnesota starter Taj Bradley struck out nine over 4 1/3 innings, but was yanked after throwing 92 pitches.
—CBS News, 28 Mar. 2026
The Pirates used six pitchers after Skenes was yanked with two outs.
—Abbey Mastracco, New York Daily News, 26 Mar. 2026
Most agents were yanked from Minnesota.
—David A. Graham, The Atlantic, 25 Mar. 2026
Harkening back to the league’s glory days, back when the big men battles were so brawling the conference temporarily went to six fouls, Ejiofor scored 18 points, yanked down nine rebounds and swatted six blocks.
—Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 15 Mar. 2026
The community backlash was swift as customers stopped going to the South End brewery and distributors yanked Sycamore products from shelves.
—Charlotte Observer, 13 Mar. 2026
Footage showed Pino lunging at Thayer as his younger brother yanked the ax away from him.
—Alexandra Koch, FOXNews.com, 12 Mar. 2026
Chad Bishop, AJC.com, 1 Apr. 2026
Zach Neto and Nolan Schanuel drew walks, sandwiched around a Trout single, and then Soler yanked a three-run double down the left field line.
—Jeff Fletcher, Oc Register, 29 Mar. 2026
Minnesota starter Taj Bradley struck out nine over 4 1/3 innings, but was yanked after throwing 92 pitches.
—CBS News, 28 Mar. 2026
The Pirates used six pitchers after Skenes was yanked with two outs.
—Abbey Mastracco, New York Daily News, 26 Mar. 2026
Most agents were yanked from Minnesota.
—David A. Graham, The Atlantic, 25 Mar. 2026
Harkening back to the league’s glory days, back when the big men battles were so brawling the conference temporarily went to six fouls, Ejiofor scored 18 points, yanked down nine rebounds and swatted six blocks.
—Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 15 Mar. 2026
The community backlash was swift as customers stopped going to the South End brewery and distributors yanked Sycamore products from shelves.
—Charlotte Observer, 13 Mar. 2026
Footage showed Pino lunging at Thayer as his younger brother yanked the ax away from him.
—Alexandra Koch, FOXNews.com, 12 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for yanked
Verb
-
We are jerked between past and present as his backstory gets filled in, one jogged memory at a time.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
13 Mar. 2026
-
Aisha jerked and opened her eyes.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The win pulled the Magic (44-36) up to seventh place in the tight race for playoff/play-in positions.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
9 Apr. 2026
-
Then Disney executives pulled the plug on them.—
Zack Sharf,
Variety,
9 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Deven Moore allegedly threatened to assault another person and grabbed an officer’s arms, according to court filings.—
Nick Sullivan
April 9,
Charlotte Observer,
9 Apr. 2026
-
The paraeducator said Vaughn-Marcella allegedly grabbed the boy’s feet and dragged him 10 to 12 feet out of the classroom, according to the affidavit.—
Justin Muszynski,
Hartford Courant,
9 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Don’t gag, don’t cry — and my stomach lurched.—
Kate Crane,
Rolling Stone,
2 Apr. 2026
-
Since then, the larger culture has lurched rightward, with big corporations abandoning progressive signaling in favor of…other priorities.—
Alison Herman,
Variety,
25 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The troop’s trailer had been pried open and almost everything inside was taken, which amounted to $7,500 worth of camping and cooking equipment, according to the outlet.—
Paloma Chavez,
PEOPLE,
9 Apr. 2026
-
Someone pried open the mailbox of a residence in the 18000 block of Vessing Road, causing damage estimated at approximately $1,200.—
Anne Gelhaus,
Mercury News,
15 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Western chimps have ripped infants from their Central mothers’ chests and battered them to death.—
Evan Bush,
NBC news,
9 Apr. 2026
-
But in 1982-83, when another super El Niño occurred, storms destroyed multiple piers and ripped away a 400-foot section of the Santa Monica Pier.—
Alex Wigglesworth,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Kearse twitched briefly after the lethal drugs began entering his system but stopped moving several minutes later.—
Freida Frisaro,
Sun Sentinel,
3 Mar. 2026
-
Through the scope, a polar bear twitched on the ice, 25 yards in front of me.—
Scott Haugen,
Outdoor Life,
4 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The money set aside to cover its share stands at almost three times the profit extracted from the UK auto finance unit over more than a decade, underscoring the severity of the capital drag.—
Tiisetso Motsoeneng,
semafor.com,
10 Apr. 2026
-
Astronauts Christina Koch and Victor Glover aboard a recovery ship after being extracted from the Artemis II capsule in the Pacific Ocean, following the Artemis II crew's flyby of the Moon, in this screengrab from a livestream video, April 10, 2026.—
Miles Doran,
CBS News,
10 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Yanked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/yanked. Accessed 13 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
