as in stung
to charge (someone) too much for goods or services
since I had forgotten the sunscreen, I was forced to buy it from the concession stand at the beach—where they gouged me for it
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Recent Examples of gouged
Successive hurricanes had gouged a hole in the Sunshine State, leaving several private carriers insolvent — and leaving hundreds of thousands of their customers with no choice but Citizens.
—
Mario Ariza, ProPublica, 15 Sep. 2025
But a low spot in the ocean, a channel gouged down into the sand on the ocean surface, or a break in a sandbar, can disrupt that flow and push water through the spot to create a current much more powerful than the surrounding flow.
—Jennifer Borresen, USA Today, 20 Aug. 2025
The greedy people will get theirs when people get fed up with being gouged at every turn.
—Ticked Off, The Orlando Sentinel, 15 Aug. 2025
Mario Ariza, ProPublica, 15 Sep. 2025
But a low spot in the ocean, a channel gouged down into the sand on the ocean surface, or a break in a sandbar, can disrupt that flow and push water through the spot to create a current much more powerful than the surrounding flow.
—Jennifer Borresen, USA Today, 20 Aug. 2025
The greedy people will get theirs when people get fed up with being gouged at every turn.
—Ticked Off, The Orlando Sentinel, 15 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gouged
Verb
-
Salt stung eyes and clung to skin, while the smell of brine and fish hung heavy in the air.—
Melissa Cristina Márquez,
Forbes.com,
18 Sep. 2025
-
That has also stung Club name Texas Roadhouse .—
Jim Cramer,
CNBC,
17 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Passed over to his hapless son (Dacre Montgomery), our (anti-)hero wires a shotgun to his head and takes him hostage, claiming that the organization’s business maneuvers cheated him out of a substantial fortune.—
Radhika Seth,
Vogue,
5 Sep. 2025
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The woman lives alone, AFP added, citing local media outlets, and was ultimately cheated out of approximately 1 million yen, or about $6,700.—
Jillian Frankel,
PEOPLE,
4 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Flat-rate pricing leads to value misalignment, high-usage customers feel undercharged, and low-usage customers feel overcharged.—
Chris Kent,
Forbes.com,
1 Sep. 2025
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The sale was made by an international brokerage firm, owned by Boulos’ cousin, which overcharged the seemingly business savvy Kushner by millions of dollars and worked to conceal the true price.—
Martha Ross,
Mercury News,
22 Aug. 2025
Verb
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As for towels, they'll likely be soaked or caked with mud after every use.—
Brandee Gruener,
Southern Living,
16 Sep. 2025
-
Over the past week, South Florida has been soaked.—
Howard Cohen,
Miami Herald,
13 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Gouged.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gouged. Accessed 21 Sep. 2025.
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