Synonyms of yanks

yanks 1 of 2

noun

plural of yank

as in tugs

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

• tugs
• pulls
• jerks
• wrenches
• draws
• hauls
• plucks
• grabs
• tows
• snatches
• twitches
• drags
• hitches

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• pushes
• thrusts
• heaves
• shoves

yanks

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of yank

1

as in jerks

to move or cause to move with a sharp quick motion

she stupidly yanked the wheel while I was driving

Synonyms & Similar Words

• jerks
• pulls
• twitches
• lurches
• grabs
• tugs
• shakes
• bucks
• jolts
• hitches
• hoicks
• staggers
• tears
• drags
• snatches
• bumps
• rips
• plucks
• jogs
• jiggles
• joggles
• lugs
• jounces
• wrenches
• jigs
• pitches
• snaps (up)
• wrings
• tweaks
• wrests

2

as in pulls

to draw out by force or with effort

yanked out a tooth with a pair of pliers

Synonyms & Similar Words

• pulls
• pries
• plucks
• extracts
• tears (out)
• removes
• prizes
• uproots
• takes (out)
• roots (out)
• mines
• withdraws
• wrings
• corkscrews
• wrests

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• inserts
• installs
• instills
• implants
• jams
• rams
• stuffs
• crams
• wedges

3

as in grabs

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

• grabs
• tears
• rips
• pulls
• snatches
• wrenches
• wrests
• seizes
• pries
• severs
• snaps (up)
• extracts
• cuts (off)
• nabs
• forces
• uproots
• jerks
• nips
• amputates
• prizes
• lops (off)
• dissevers
• roots (out)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• reattaches

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of yanks

Noun

The yanks are coming, the yanks are coming! — Kirk Bowman, The Conversation, 9 June 2026

Verb

When that doesn’t work, Vicki yanks off her mic and retreats to her bedroom, leaving the others uncertain of what to do next. — Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 11 Sep. 2026

Johnson yanks veterans' benefits package An effort to advance a package of VA benefits bills this morning on the House floor went down in flames – the latest in Speaker Mike Johnson's struggle to get Republicans on the same page. — Zachary Schermele, USA Today, 16 July 2026

Like a false note on an out-of-tune piano, a clunky verb, a sentence without rhythm, yanks the reader out the flow of the work. — Literary Hub, 19 May 2026

Maden takes thee wine bottle from him and the officers reach for his wrists but Brown resists and yanks his arms back, the video shows. — Rocco Parascandola, New York Daily News, 19 Apr. 2026

Leaphorn yanks the jug his way (despite being cuffed) and is able to put the filter packet down his pants. — Jordan Hoffman, Entertainment Weekly, 6 Apr. 2026

According to the footage, Falcinelli then moves toward the officer before the officer yanks him by the arm. — Devoun Cetoute, Miami Herald, 24 Feb. 2026

Behind Jovan, the posse breaks into boardinghouses, yanks a miner from behind a grocery counter, shoots another dead in his home. — Masha Hamilton, Longreads, 19 Feb. 2026

Judy yanks Mikey’s roller trunk out of the mud and leads him toward one of the nearby hiking trails. — Michael Nied, PEOPLE, 26 Nov. 2025