as in squeezed
to rob by the use of trickery or threats
the Internet opened up a whole new medium for con artists to pluck the gullible
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Recent Examples of plucked
Our guide in Moscow, Tanya, was a middle-aged woman who wore thick glasses plucked from a swiveling Optika stand at a Metro station.
—
Literary Hub, 3 Apr. 2026
Somberness, as well as anger and sadness, color the majority of the songs plucked from Springsteen's vast catalog to underscore the reason for this 20-date tour.
—Melissa Ruggieri, USA Today, 1 Apr. 2026
In desperation, Apple plucked its next CEO from its own board, Gil Amelio, who had engineered a turnaround at computer chipmaker National Semiconductor.
—ABC News, 31 Mar. 2026
From Gore, acquired for five prospects from Washington, to Brandon Nimmo, swapped for Marcus Semien, to Andrew McCutchen, plucked for a bag of beans, there were big contributions across the board from the newcomers.
—Evan Grant, Dallas Morning News, 29 Mar. 2026
Some songs here have been plucked from Robyn’s back catalog and given a dusting up for the 2020s.
—Molly Mary O’Brien, Pitchfork, 27 Mar. 2026
Come down from your tower for a steak, some seafood plucked from Gulf waters, a martini.
—Elazar Sontag, Washington Post, 26 Mar. 2026
The Kings plucked a point from that affair thanks to a third-period tally from winger Artemi Panarin, who scored their only goal a night earlier against the Buffalo Sabres.
—Andrew Knoll, Daily News, 23 Mar. 2026
The team was always clear that the cast needed to be mostly up-and-coming talent, many of whom have been plucked from the growing world of social media comedy.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 20 Mar. 2026
Literary Hub, 3 Apr. 2026
Somberness, as well as anger and sadness, color the majority of the songs plucked from Springsteen's vast catalog to underscore the reason for this 20-date tour.
—Melissa Ruggieri, USA Today, 1 Apr. 2026
In desperation, Apple plucked its next CEO from its own board, Gil Amelio, who had engineered a turnaround at computer chipmaker National Semiconductor.
—ABC News, 31 Mar. 2026
From Gore, acquired for five prospects from Washington, to Brandon Nimmo, swapped for Marcus Semien, to Andrew McCutchen, plucked for a bag of beans, there were big contributions across the board from the newcomers.
—Evan Grant, Dallas Morning News, 29 Mar. 2026
Some songs here have been plucked from Robyn’s back catalog and given a dusting up for the 2020s.
—Molly Mary O’Brien, Pitchfork, 27 Mar. 2026
Come down from your tower for a steak, some seafood plucked from Gulf waters, a martini.
—Elazar Sontag, Washington Post, 26 Mar. 2026
The Kings plucked a point from that affair thanks to a third-period tally from winger Artemi Panarin, who scored their only goal a night earlier against the Buffalo Sabres.
—Andrew Knoll, Daily News, 23 Mar. 2026
The team was always clear that the cast needed to be mostly up-and-coming talent, many of whom have been plucked from the growing world of social media comedy.
—Max Goldbart, Deadline, 20 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for plucked
Verb
-
Some parents feel squeezed when gifted assets significantly appreciate, according to Robert Westley of Northern Trust.—
Hayley Cuccinello,
CNBC,
2 Apr. 2026
-
Higher gas prices can also hurt sales inside the gas stations, if customers who are being squeezed at the pump spend less on other things.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
2 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The dads and sons hustled to a nearby dirt patch.—
Charles Bethea,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
-
Minnesota pulled even in the fourth when Byron Buxton hustled home on sacrifice fly by Josh Bell.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Anyone who is stung repeatedly or has trouble breathing should call 911.—
Rey Covarrubias Jr,
AZCentral.com,
29 Mar. 2026
-
These scandals stung at the time, but looking back, Cyrus wouldn’t have changed a thing.—
Ethan Shanfeld,
Variety,
18 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Teddy, specifically, has also cheated death on the series several times.—
Jackie Strause,
HollywoodReporter,
25 Mar. 2026
-
Indigenous people have been cheated through laws such as are operated in Nigeria today.—
Noo Saro-Wiwa,
The Dial,
24 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The average commuter spends 63 hours a year stuck in traffic.—
Jessica Guynn,
USA Today,
1 Apr. 2026
-
The suspect was stuck in the shoulder while a stray bullet grazed a sleeping 71-year-old in a near by home.—
Colleen Cronin,
Boston Herald,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
A lot of times, much of a Hollywood memoir is someone saying this person screwed me over, this bad thing happened, and so on.—
Vinson Cunningham,
New Yorker,
29 Mar. 2026
-
Harper is thrilled, Whitney is screwed.—
Meg Walters,
Glamour,
2 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The Suns then tied the game at 94-94 after Jordan Goodwin beat the buzzer with a corner triple to end the period.—
Jason Beede,
The Orlando Sentinel,
1 Apr. 2026
-
Keller stymies defending champ Coppell Claire Garritson scored the game-winning goal in the second half and Keller hung on to beat defending state champion Coppell 2-1 in the Class 6A Division 1 Region 1 Final on Tuesday night at Keller High School.—
Darren Lauber,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
1 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Plucked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plucked. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.
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