1
as in shuffling
to move heavily or clumsily
flooded residents who were forced to trudge through waist-deep water
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in stumbling
to proceed or act clumsily or ineffectually
no expert on taxes, I spent the whole weekend trudging through government forms
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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Recent Examples of trudging
Ohio State’s win against Texas is still fine, but the Longhorns have looked disappointing, too, after trudging through a 27-10 win against UTEP.
—
Chris Vannini, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2025
In the engaging trailer that continues the sinister tale of Vault-Tec, The Ghoul arrives in New Vegas alongside Lucy MacLean (Ella Purnell) and Dogmeat, trudging into the outskirts of New Vegas.
—Jeff Spry, Space.com, 22 Aug. 2025
Without a doubt there are people who would pay serious money to see Jeffrey Katzenberg hanging out and trudging through the sand and dirt at Burning Man.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 22 Aug. 2025
They were left operating on fumes by the end, with Ollie Watkins — Duran’s replacement — starved of service and Morgan Rogers consigned to trudging off the pitch, knowing his long dribbling bursts would have scant options ahead of him.
—Jacob Tanswell, The Athletic, 27 Dec. 2024
Standard time brings more sunshine to earlier hours, insuring that children are not trudging to school in cold-weather darkness.
—David K. Li, NBC News, 22 Dec. 2024
The Dakota boots are armored in waterproof rubber and have a rugged outsole, so trudging through sleet and snow is no issue.
—Emily Weaver, People.com, 14 Dec. 2024
My boots were dusty from trudging through vineyards.
—Megan Lloyd, Travel + Leisure, 7 Dec. 2024
His England side though barely got out of second gear in South Africa and were eliminated from the 2010 World Cup in the round of 16 after trudging through the group stage with draws against the USA and Algeria.
—Steve Price, Forbes, 16 Oct. 2024
Chris Vannini, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2025
In the engaging trailer that continues the sinister tale of Vault-Tec, The Ghoul arrives in New Vegas alongside Lucy MacLean (Ella Purnell) and Dogmeat, trudging into the outskirts of New Vegas.
—Jeff Spry, Space.com, 22 Aug. 2025
Without a doubt there are people who would pay serious money to see Jeffrey Katzenberg hanging out and trudging through the sand and dirt at Burning Man.
—Dominic Patten, Deadline, 22 Aug. 2025
They were left operating on fumes by the end, with Ollie Watkins — Duran’s replacement — starved of service and Morgan Rogers consigned to trudging off the pitch, knowing his long dribbling bursts would have scant options ahead of him.
—Jacob Tanswell, The Athletic, 27 Dec. 2024
Standard time brings more sunshine to earlier hours, insuring that children are not trudging to school in cold-weather darkness.
—David K. Li, NBC News, 22 Dec. 2024
The Dakota boots are armored in waterproof rubber and have a rugged outsole, so trudging through sleet and snow is no issue.
—Emily Weaver, People.com, 14 Dec. 2024
My boots were dusty from trudging through vineyards.
—Megan Lloyd, Travel + Leisure, 7 Dec. 2024
His England side though barely got out of second gear in South Africa and were eliminated from the 2010 World Cup in the round of 16 after trudging through the group stage with draws against the USA and Algeria.
—Steve Price, Forbes, 16 Oct. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for trudging
Verb
-
In it, a monster with bolts in his head and a shuffling gate was created by a man.—
David Fear,
Rolling Stone,
9 Sep. 2025
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The closures have resulted in staff shuffling throughout the library system and rescheduled activities such as author talks and photography exhibits.—
Noah Lyons,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The episode ends with a surreal, graphic deepfake scene of a totally nude Donald Trump stumbling around a desert.—
Nick Marx,
The Conversation,
11 Sep. 2025
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Inside the agency, Dudek, ill-prepared for leadership or for DOGE’s murky agenda, was stumbling through the chaos in part by creating some of his own.—
Eli Hager,
ProPublica,
8 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Cena’s chrome-domed antihero, Freddie Stroma’s Vigilante and and Danielle Brooks’ Adebayo stomping through spots of light.—
Matt Webb Mitovich,
TVLine,
21 Aug. 2025
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No velvet rope, no fourth wall—just boot-stomping, beer-sign neon and crowd-absorption tech.—
Bob Bonniol,
Rolling Stone,
13 Aug. 2025
Verb
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However, there is overall good news for renters across the country struggling with higher costs.—
Giulia Carbonaro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
18 Sep. 2025
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Like your obliques, your adductors provide stability and alignment that can make the difference between moving with ease and struggling with pain.—
Dana Santas,
CNN Money,
17 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Trudging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/trudging. Accessed 20 Sep. 2025.
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