1
as in complained
to express dissatisfaction, pain, or resentment usually tiresomely
he grumbled about how sore his feet were after standing all day
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Recent Examples of grumbled
The novel, published to immediate controversy in India—an obscenity suit was filed over its portrayal of an intercaste romance—offended her Syrian Christian kin, who grumbled about misrepresentation.
—
Rebecca Mead, New Yorker, 3 Sep. 2025
At those, Democrats restless about their party’s direction grumbled at Levin’s answers and urged more action from their leaders; one event was disrupted by protests over Israel’s killing of Palestinians in Gaza.
—Lucas Robinson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 Aug. 2025
The Arizona Republic last week reported that teammates and others in the organization have quietly grumbled about Marte’s habit of requesting off days.
—Doug Haller, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2025
Some loyalists grumbled for months about skimpy chicken portions.
—Preston Fore, Fortune, 10 Aug. 2025
For decades, Yankees players, for the most part, grumbled but complied.
—Marc Edelman, Forbes, 25 Feb. 2025
The Bruins fell to non-basketball powers like Nebraska and Rutgers, as well as Maryland and Michigan, all while fifth-year coach Mick Cronin grumbled about Big Ten travel and the absurdity of spending nearly 10 days straight back east.
—Lindsay Schnell, The Athletic, 5 Feb. 2025
Tarp quipped that Queen initially grumbled at the abundance of exercises, but has since engaged in them without any prompting from Tarp.
—Edward Lee, Baltimore Sun, 5 Jan. 2025
Some members of the conservative Arizona Freedom Caucus publicly grumbled after he was selected to lead the chamber by secret ballot.
—Ray Stern, The Arizona Republic, 3 Jan. 2025
Rebecca Mead, New Yorker, 3 Sep. 2025
At those, Democrats restless about their party’s direction grumbled at Levin’s answers and urged more action from their leaders; one event was disrupted by protests over Israel’s killing of Palestinians in Gaza.
—Lucas Robinson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 Aug. 2025
The Arizona Republic last week reported that teammates and others in the organization have quietly grumbled about Marte’s habit of requesting off days.
—Doug Haller, New York Times, 19 Aug. 2025
Some loyalists grumbled for months about skimpy chicken portions.
—Preston Fore, Fortune, 10 Aug. 2025
For decades, Yankees players, for the most part, grumbled but complied.
—Marc Edelman, Forbes, 25 Feb. 2025
The Bruins fell to non-basketball powers like Nebraska and Rutgers, as well as Maryland and Michigan, all while fifth-year coach Mick Cronin grumbled about Big Ten travel and the absurdity of spending nearly 10 days straight back east.
—Lindsay Schnell, The Athletic, 5 Feb. 2025
Tarp quipped that Queen initially grumbled at the abundance of exercises, but has since engaged in them without any prompting from Tarp.
—Edward Lee, Baltimore Sun, 5 Jan. 2025
Some members of the conservative Arizona Freedom Caucus publicly grumbled after he was selected to lead the chamber by secret ballot.
—Ray Stern, The Arizona Republic, 3 Jan. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for grumbled
Verb
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In the past, fans and competitors have complained of long gaps in the schedule to start the season.—
Bruce Martin,
Forbes.com,
16 Sep. 2025
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Gil complained that the mound was slick, and the grounds crew came out to work on it in between innings.—
Gabrielle Starr,
Boston Herald,
13 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Witnesses screamed in horror and fled for cover after the bullet struck Kirk in the neck.—
Michael Ruiz , Peter D'Abrosca , Julia Bonavita , Sarah Rumpf-Whitten , David Spunt , CB Cotton,
FOXNews.com,
12 Sep. 2025
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Images shared on social media showed flames shooting high into the air as people screamed and ran from the scene in the Iztapalapa borough.—
Rocío Muñoz-Ledo,
CNN Money,
11 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Facing a third-and-25 after a big penalty, Keller pulled out the tricks with a throwback pass from Brock Meek to Burkett, who rumbled 48 yards to the Texans’ 2-yard line.—
Jordan Neal,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
13 Sep. 2025
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But Kraft ran Harris over, rumbled to the 7-yard line and two plays later Josh Jacobs had a 2-yard TD run.—
Rob Reischel,
Forbes.com,
12 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Although full disclosure, those two words were muttered in the press box Sunday after Nix had thrown two unsightly picks through the first three quarters of the Broncos’ win over Tennessee.—
Sean Keeler,
Denver Post,
7 Sep. 2025
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There are few actors whose disembodied voices could carry long stretches of cinema, but Dafoe manages it, turning monologues about marionette mechanics or muttered complaints about hotel politics into something weirdly magnetic.—
Leila Latif,
IndieWire,
31 Aug. 2025
Verb
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From the other room, the victim moaned.—
Stephanie Kuzydym,
The Courier-Journal,
15 Aug. 2025
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Yankees fans have moaned and groaned about Aaron Boone’s deployment of Williams in crucial situations this season, and it’s only exacerbated now that every game counts in the postseason race.—
Scott Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
9 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Grumbled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/grumbled. Accessed 19 Sep. 2025.
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