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
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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
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of yanked
Still, the crisis was remarkable in that, despite the 1-billion-plus barrels yanked from the market since February, US and European benchmark crude prices didn’t top the spike following the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
—
Tim McDonnell, semafor.com, 16 June 2026
The announced attendance was a capacity 80,663, which is a little under 2,000 less than full capacity for the Giants and Jets as seats had to be yanked out down low to fit the regulation soccer field into MetLife Stadium.
—Andy Clayton, New York Daily News, 14 June 2026
An abrupt sell-off in once-soaring artificial intelligence stocks yanked Wall Street sharply lower, erasing five weeks of gains and knocking the Standard & Poor’s 500 index, Dow and Nasdaq into broad retreat.
—Stan Choe, Los Angeles Times, 10 June 2026
But the suspicion the US wasn’t really a football nation was compounded at the opening ceremony, after Diana Ross danced the length of the pitch to take a penalty kick and yanked the ball far left of the goal, which was unfortunately rigged to split apart to simulate a wonder-strike.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 9 June 2026
The Venice Biennale opened its most chaotic and contested edition in recent memory on May 9, with the prestigious Golden Lion yanked from contention after the jury quit in protest of Israel’s and Russia’s participation.
—ABC News, 4 June 2026
The court filing also alleges that Wyatt yanked another 2-year-old off a toilet after the child accidentally urinated on the floor, and on another occasion allegedly directed a group of children to attack a 3-year-old.
—Sean Neumann, PEOPLE, 2 June 2026
Her only help came from a passenger who yanked the girls away.
—Caitlin McGlade, Charlotte Observer, 2 June 2026
Miller overcorrected with his next pitch and yanked a fastball way inside before sending a fastball above the zone.
—Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 May 2026
Tim McDonnell, semafor.com, 16 June 2026
The announced attendance was a capacity 80,663, which is a little under 2,000 less than full capacity for the Giants and Jets as seats had to be yanked out down low to fit the regulation soccer field into MetLife Stadium.
—Andy Clayton, New York Daily News, 14 June 2026
An abrupt sell-off in once-soaring artificial intelligence stocks yanked Wall Street sharply lower, erasing five weeks of gains and knocking the Standard & Poor’s 500 index, Dow and Nasdaq into broad retreat.
—Stan Choe, Los Angeles Times, 10 June 2026
But the suspicion the US wasn’t really a football nation was compounded at the opening ceremony, after Diana Ross danced the length of the pitch to take a penalty kick and yanked the ball far left of the goal, which was unfortunately rigged to split apart to simulate a wonder-strike.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 9 June 2026
The Venice Biennale opened its most chaotic and contested edition in recent memory on May 9, with the prestigious Golden Lion yanked from contention after the jury quit in protest of Israel’s and Russia’s participation.
—ABC News, 4 June 2026
The court filing also alleges that Wyatt yanked another 2-year-old off a toilet after the child accidentally urinated on the floor, and on another occasion allegedly directed a group of children to attack a 3-year-old.
—Sean Neumann, PEOPLE, 2 June 2026
Her only help came from a passenger who yanked the girls away.
—Caitlin McGlade, Charlotte Observer, 2 June 2026
Miller overcorrected with his next pitch and yanked a fastball way inside before sending a fastball above the zone.
—Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for yanked
Verb
-
In the summer of 2020, former Morgan Stanley trader Adam Crawley was wandering through Indonesia, Thailand and Australia, perfecting his qigong with a man called Master YanG, when a cold message on LinkedIn jerked him back to reality.—
Phoebe Liu,
Forbes.com,
26 May 2026
-
John jerked Maggie back by the elbow and stopped her from stepping into the street.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
8 May 2026
Verb
-
In a lot of cases, Earth’s gravity probably captured these objects and pulled them in, adding them to its growing bulk.—
Kiona N. Smith,
Space.com,
17 June 2026
-
The Telegraph reports that the artist pulled a Russian flag from his pants and threw it in a trash can.—
Brian Boucher,
ARTnews.com,
17 June 2026
Verb
-
Cameron Brink added 15 points off the bench and Dearica Hamby grabbed 10 rebounds for the Sparks (6-6) in the Commissioner’s Cup game.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
11 June 2026
-
Cameron Brink added 15 points off the bench, Erica Wheeler scored 10 and Dearica Hamby grabbed 10 rebounds for the Sparks (6-6) in the Commissioner’s Cup game.—
Daily News,
Daily News,
11 June 2026
Verb
-
As the opening ceremony began with a flurry of speeches, the bus carrying Team Zambia lurched to a stop by the side of the road in southern Zimbabwe, 200 miles away.—
Ryan Lenora Brown,
NPR,
14 June 2026
-
In a December 2024 crash, a bus lurched onto a sidewalk outside Curley K-8 School in the Jamaica Plain neighborhood.—
Willoughby Mariano,
ProPublica,
8 June 2026
Verb
-
When peacemakers finally pried apart Slaughter and Dropo, Slaughter had his jersey ripped, but Dropo had taken the more telling punches.—
Kori Rumore,
Chicago Tribune,
13 June 2026
-
On May 5, three people dressed in waterproof hip waders and other protective gear pried open a maintenance hole cover and descended into the sewer on a street in Queens.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
2 June 2026
Verb
-
According to Ferguson, the adults were ripped out of the car as children were screaming in the backseat.—
JT Moodee Lockman,
CBS News,
11 June 2026
-
Shayne Gostisbehere ripped a shot on goal, and after Hart made the save, Staal was first to find the puck and a clear shot right in front of the goal.—
Scott Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
10 June 2026
Verb
-
Many a club’s board would have twitched in the face of the bare data, but the chain of command above Arteta stayed the course, and the FOMO is so high that tickets for Palace away this weekend are going for £45,000 ($60,000) on resale sites.—
Phil Hay,
New York Times,
21 May 2026
-
My jaw twitched uncontrollably.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
15 May 2026
Verb
-
Well, that individual that has extracted themselves from that social context, that story of their experience kind of ends there.—
Jim Ryan,
Forbes.com,
12 June 2026
-
About six months later, in March of this year, investigators received confirmation that a DNA profile was extracted from the remains.—
David Chiu,
PEOPLE,
12 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Yanked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/yanked. Accessed 18 Jun. 2026.
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