1
as in yanking
to move or cause to move with a sharp quick motion
the car bucked and stalled
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in resisting
to refuse to give in to
bucked the trend to outdo everyone else and just wore the same clothes they had in previous years
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in handing
to shift possession of (something) from one person to another
buck each box to the next person in line, and the last person will stack them in the storeroom
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of bucking
The price of rent in the city and surrounding county is dropping, bucking regional and statewide trends.
—
Andrew J. Campa, Los Angeles Times, 1 Feb. 2026
The Reader’s nonprofit board and foundational partners sought help from Noisy Creek, an upstart publisher bucking the trends and betting on the future of alt-weeklies.
—Robert Channick, Chicago Tribune, 30 Jan. 2026
With olive green and purple designs, Maison Lejaby was bucking the sobriety trend.
—Alex Wynne, Footwear News, 30 Jan. 2026
Blue-chip megafunds continue to attract capital, bucking the trend.
—Hank Tucker, Forbes.com, 29 Jan. 2026
Spain plans to grant 500,000 undocumented migrants legal status, bucking a trend among many Western nations that are cracking down on immigration.
—semafor.com, 28 Jan. 2026
King repeatedly voted to reopen the government during the last shutdown, bucking his caucus.
—Garrett Downs,emily Wilkins, CNBC, 28 Jan. 2026
The Hoosiers, who are favored to beat Miami in the title game, are on the verge of bucking that trend.
—Sam Khan Jr, New York Times, 17 Jan. 2026
Murkowski made headlines in 2022 and 2024 for bucking her party and supporting Peltola‘s House campaigns.
—Molly Parks, The Washington Examiner, 12 Jan. 2026
Andrew J. Campa, Los Angeles Times, 1 Feb. 2026
The Reader’s nonprofit board and foundational partners sought help from Noisy Creek, an upstart publisher bucking the trends and betting on the future of alt-weeklies.
—Robert Channick, Chicago Tribune, 30 Jan. 2026
With olive green and purple designs, Maison Lejaby was bucking the sobriety trend.
—Alex Wynne, Footwear News, 30 Jan. 2026
Blue-chip megafunds continue to attract capital, bucking the trend.
—Hank Tucker, Forbes.com, 29 Jan. 2026
Spain plans to grant 500,000 undocumented migrants legal status, bucking a trend among many Western nations that are cracking down on immigration.
—semafor.com, 28 Jan. 2026
King repeatedly voted to reopen the government during the last shutdown, bucking his caucus.
—Garrett Downs,emily Wilkins, CNBC, 28 Jan. 2026
The Hoosiers, who are favored to beat Miami in the title game, are on the verge of bucking that trend.
—Sam Khan Jr, New York Times, 17 Jan. 2026
Murkowski made headlines in 2022 and 2024 for bucking her party and supporting Peltola‘s House campaigns.
—Molly Parks, The Washington Examiner, 12 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bucking
Verb
-
Hotel video footage showed the pair forcing entry into the hotel by yanking on a lobby door and breaking the lock.—
Nick Ferraro,
Twin Cities,
5 Feb. 2026
-
The yellow bucket of a heavy construction excavator crashed down onto the roof of the vacant home at Parade Park, yanking it into a heap of split plaster and lumber.—
Eric Adler,
Kansas City Star,
4 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Pearce later crashed his vehicle and was accused of resisting arrest.—
Ryan Gaydos,
FOXNews.com,
9 Feb. 2026
-
Franco and Proni kept the circulation intuitive, resisting any intervention that might interrupt the architecture’s original flow.—
Abby Montanez,
Robb Report,
8 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Children were often seen handing the monks flowers, who in return gifted blessing strings.—
Michelle Del Rey,
USA Today,
11 Feb. 2026
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The singer grew up watching his idols win awards on television, and eventually, those idols began handing him the awards.—
Itzel Luna,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The room sighs in relief a second later when Buckley reanimates, jerking and flailing like a soul possessed, grinning maniacally — all on purpose, inspired by the earlier veil snafu.—
Sydney Bucksbaum,
Entertainment Weekly,
3 Feb. 2026
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Some signs that the carburetor is clogged on a snow blower are starting then dying a few seconds afterward, jerking, sputtering noises, and black smoke emitting from the exhaust.—
David Beaulieu,
The Spruce,
1 Feb. 2026
Verb
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But most Jews have little trouble simultaneously affirming care and concern for Israel and Israelis and opposing Israeli policies, including the extended war in Gaza, the occupation of territories captured in 1967, and the expansion of settlements.—
Rabbi Jill Jacobs,
Sun Sentinel,
10 Feb. 2026
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Trump then predicted that Mills’ political career would be over for opposing the order.—
Joey Cappelletti,
Chicago Tribune,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
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At 37 years old, Stafford led the NFL in both passing yards (4,707) and passing touchdowns (46), while recording a career-low eight interceptions.—
Jackson Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
6 Feb. 2026
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Attempting to break an Eastern Washington University receiving record is like trying to set a franchise passing mark with the Patriots.—
Doug Kyed,
Boston Herald,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
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After that setback, the Seahawks lost their edge to stay ahead of a league designed to keep pulling teams toward the middle.—
Jerry Brewer,
New York Times,
9 Feb. 2026
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Yet the final also required Vonn to push her knee further than in either of her two training runs, when she could be seen pulling back around some turns so as not to exert too much strain before the main event.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
8 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Natanya complicates her old-school character sketch with cerebral shifts in perspective, affecting each of the voices that accompany a young woman’s drive for success and independence (demanding friends and parents, sexist expectations, her own willpower) in a lurching cascade of melodies.—
H.D. Angel,
Pitchfork,
13 Jan. 2026
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The midterm blue wave backlash is gathering, with the generic ballot lurching in the Democrats' favor and Trump’s popularity cratering.—
Matt Robison,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Bucking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bucking. Accessed 16 Feb. 2026.
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