1
as in to complain
to express dissatisfaction, pain, or resentment usually tiresomely
the cranky patient was always croaking to the nurses about something
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to die
slang
to stop living
I wouldn't go around saying your great-grandmother "croaked"
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to kill
slang
to deprive of life
"I croaked the old bugger," he bragged
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in to assassinate
slang
to put to death deliberately
hooligans had croaked the street corner wino just for the hell of it
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in squawk
Synonyms & Similar Words
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 croak
Rebecca Alter, Vulture, 4 Oct. 2024
At last, being informed that her ex had croaked inspired Donna to tearfully sign her DNR.
—Charlie Mason, TVLine, 10 Oct. 2024
Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 13 Mar. 2025
The one-time ingenue made gallows humor out of her ruination, glorying in the cracks and croaks of her voice.
—Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 31 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for croak
Verb
This is a Joker whose seen things, who has lived a hundred lives, who hobbles around like a dang-ass freak and croaks out a weird lizard laugh between smacks of his weird lizard lips.
—Rebecca Alter, Vulture, 4 Oct. 2024
At last, being informed that her ex had croaked inspired Donna to tearfully sign her DNR.
—Charlie Mason, TVLine, 10 Oct. 2024
Noun
In the English dub of Hayao Miyazaki’s The Boy and the Heron, Pattinson lends the heron an unsavory croak.
—Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 13 Mar. 2025
The one-time ingenue made gallows humor out of her ruination, glorying in the cracks and croaks of her voice.
—Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 31 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for croak
Recent Examples of Synonyms for croak
Verb
-
Patterson complained about her in-laws behind their backs Erin and Simon Patterson got married in 2007 and, after splitting and reconciling multiple times over the years, separated permanently in 2015.—
Rachel Treisman,
NPR,
7 June 2025
-
Occasionally, drivers call the CHP to complain — especially during rush hour.—
Tina Li,
Sacbee.com,
7 June 2025
Verb
-
The filming of his funeral took three full days, and Hogestyn died the following weekend.—
Rosemary Rossi,
Variety,
9 June 2025
-
Sly Stone, a funk pioneer whose influence and impact as leader of the musical group Sly and the Family Stone was as enduring as his career was brief, died Monday in Los Angeles.—
Rob Tannenbaum,
Los Angeles Times,
9 June 2025
Verb
-
The California Department of Justice will investigate a fatal shooting by Los Angeles Police Department officers under a law that empowers the state attorney general to probe police shootings of unarmed people — despite the LAPD saying the man killed Tuesday was holding a gun.—
Matthew Ormseth,
Los Angeles Times,
6 June 2025
-
Without treatment, the disease eventually kills the corals, and their soft tissue falls off, revealing the white calcium carbonate skeleton below.—
Sarah Kuta,
Smithsonian Magazine,
5 June 2025
Verb
-
Musk first announced his support for Trump shortly after the then-candidate was nearly assassinated on stage at a Pennsylvania rally last July.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
6 June 2025
-
This time, he’s tasked with assassinating a powerful member of a secret society of international crime bosses known as the High Table.—
Emily Blackwood,
People.com,
6 June 2025
Noun
-
The animals use complex clicks, squawks and whistles to call out to each other, fight and attract a mate.—
Sara Hashemi,
Smithsonian Magazine,
25 Apr. 2025
-
The show is thrilling as a sensory experience, humming with sinister percussive beats and the occasional muffled animal squawk in the distance.—
Sophie Gilbert,
The Atlantic,
5 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
Leonardo DiCaprio’s screaming to the top of his lungs.—
Andre Gee,
Rolling Stone,
9 June 2025
-
Medvedev added, including an emoji of a screaming face.—
Shane Croucher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
6 June 2025
Verb
-
For salespeople, especially, the rule is adapt or perish.—
Levi King,
Forbes.com,
10 June 2025
-
The idea was about what the world of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles would look like if all but one perished.—
James Brizuela,
MSNBC Newsweek,
4 June 2025
Verb
-
If trillion-dollar bonds are required to contest trillion-dollar damages our government is causing, that destroys the protections our Constitution provides its citizens against the rule of tyrants.—
Letters to the Editor,
The Orlando Sentinel,
8 June 2025
-
Ukraine underscored the risk to advanced military powers on June 1 when its inexpensive drones damaged or destroyed strategic warplanes across Russia.—
Tom Vanden Brook,
USA Today,
8 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Croak.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/croak. Accessed 20 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share