as in applies
to bring to bear especially forcefully or effectively
parental involvement has consistently been shown to exert the most influence over a child's success in school
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Recent Examples of exerts
Mechanism of action Cisplatin exerts its effects by interacting directly with DNA.
—
Encyclopedia Britannica, 8 May 2026
The governor exerts much control over education priorities through the state budget.
—Howard Blume, Los Angeles Times, 1 May 2026
Censure by the committee also exerts considerable moral pressure to resign.
—ABC News, 27 Apr. 2026
The devastating, almost sadistic hold Ruben exerts over the mostly masochistic Niall is gripping — but hard — to watch.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 24 Apr. 2026
The new data comes as the Iran war has strangled the global supply chain as Iran exerts its control over the Strait of Hormuz, through which one-third of global fertilizer shipments flowed before the war.
—Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez, Fortune, 16 Apr. 2026
In athletes, fat stored in muscle — predominantly in muscle fiber droplets — is an important energy reserve that the body taps into when a person exerts an extraordinary amount of energy.
—Kaitlin Sullivan, NBC news, 14 Apr. 2026
The 34 states suing Live Nation and Ticketmaster made one last push to convince the jurors that company — with its dominant position in ticketing, concert promotions, and venues — exerts outsized control compared to its competitors.
—Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 9 Apr. 2026
Coming up today for Day Five of the mission, Orion officially enters the lunar sphere of influence—where the moon’s gravity exerts a stronger pull on the spacecraft than Earth’s gravity does.
—Claire Cameron, Scientific American, 5 Apr. 2026
Encyclopedia Britannica, 8 May 2026
The governor exerts much control over education priorities through the state budget.
—Howard Blume, Los Angeles Times, 1 May 2026
Censure by the committee also exerts considerable moral pressure to resign.
—ABC News, 27 Apr. 2026
The devastating, almost sadistic hold Ruben exerts over the mostly masochistic Niall is gripping — but hard — to watch.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 24 Apr. 2026
The new data comes as the Iran war has strangled the global supply chain as Iran exerts its control over the Strait of Hormuz, through which one-third of global fertilizer shipments flowed before the war.
—Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez, Fortune, 16 Apr. 2026
In athletes, fat stored in muscle — predominantly in muscle fiber droplets — is an important energy reserve that the body taps into when a person exerts an extraordinary amount of energy.
—Kaitlin Sullivan, NBC news, 14 Apr. 2026
The 34 states suing Live Nation and Ticketmaster made one last push to convince the jurors that company — with its dominant position in ticketing, concert promotions, and venues — exerts outsized control compared to its competitors.
—Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 9 Apr. 2026
Coming up today for Day Five of the mission, Orion officially enters the lunar sphere of influence—where the moon’s gravity exerts a stronger pull on the spacecraft than Earth’s gravity does.
—Claire Cameron, Scientific American, 5 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for exerts
Verb
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The measure applies only to the Senate, not the House, highlighting ongoing tensions between the two chambers over responsibility for funding the federal government.—
Joey Cappelletti,
Los Angeles Times,
14 May 2026
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This applies especially for pets, because the algae can be extremely dangerous to their health.—
Dan Raby,
CBS News,
14 May 2026
Verb
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Tarik Skubal, the two-time American League Cy Young Award winner, can throw about as hard as Misiorowski, but Skubal uses his four-seam fastball less than forty per cent of the time.—
Louisa Thomas,
New Yorker,
17 May 2026
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Comfortable on either flank, and equally happy shooting with his left or right foot, Guardiola initially deployed Semenyo in a No 10 role, but now uses him mostly from the right flank.—
Michael Cox,
New York Times,
17 May 2026
Verb
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Tracks may start with classy piano, but subtlety is almost never the end product; the group wields sidechains like a bandolier, extracting the maximum possible velocity in every kick while retaining the gooey melodic centre.—
Nathan Evans,
Pitchfork,
12 May 2026
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The Brown family wields about 80% of Brown-Forman’s voting power, while the Ricard heirs control about 21% of their family business.—
Rohan Goswami,
semafor.com,
7 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Exerts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/exerts. Accessed 20 May. 2026.
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