1
as in to complain
to express dissatisfaction, pain, or resentment usually tiresomely
the cranky patient was always croaking to the nurses about something
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to die
slang
to stop living
I wouldn't go around saying your great-grandmother "croaked"
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to kill
slang
to deprive of life
"I croaked the old bugger," he bragged
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4
as in to assassinate
slang
to put to death deliberately
hooligans had croaked the street corner wino just for the hell of it
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of croak
David Amsden, Condé Nast Traveler, 28 Dec. 2025
But longtime church organist Alice Glick, who started in 1991's Season 2 (when the first George Bush was president), croaked.
—Bryan Alexander, USA Today, 26 Dec. 2025
Jonathan Miles, Harpers Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026
The mangrove forests resounded with birdsong: the high trill of swallows and the guttural croak of snail kites.
—Simon Willis, Travel + Leisure, 5 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for croak
Verb
Come nightfall, the chatter of a dizzying array of bird species (tanagers, toucans, motmots) gives way to a symphony of croaking frogs.
—David Amsden, Condé Nast Traveler, 28 Dec. 2025
But longtime church organist Alice Glick, who started in 1991's Season 2 (when the first George Bush was president), croaked.
—Bryan Alexander, USA Today, 26 Dec. 2025
Noun
The men stood frowning at each other and then back at Adi until the one without the gun broke into croaks of laughter.
—Jonathan Miles, Harpers Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026
The mangrove forests resounded with birdsong: the high trill of swallows and the guttural croak of snail kites.
—Simon Willis, Travel + Leisure, 5 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for croak
Recent Examples of Synonyms for croak
Verb
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Elsewhere, Super Mario Galaxy is hardly complaining about coming in second ruling the roost for weeks, since it’s now focused on becoming the first film of the year to join the billion-dollar club after finishing Sunday with a global total of $871 million.—
Pamela McClintock,
HollywoodReporter,
26 Apr. 2026
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Commenters who never have been — and never will go — complain about the cost, the influencers, the hype.—
Andrea Domanick,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Apr. 2026
Verb
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In 2019, Elisa Serna died at the Las Colinas women’s jail after a doctor and nurse left her alone after watching her collapse.—
Kelly Davis,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
26 Apr. 2026
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That’s the year the Boston Marathon suffered a terrorist attack in which three people died and hundreds more were injured.—
Cressida Leyshon,
New Yorker,
26 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The couple had tied the knot less than two months before she was killed, the outlet reported at the time.—
Samira Asma-Sadeque,
PEOPLE,
1 May 2026
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Tim’s best friend in high school, Chris, was tragically killed in service.—
Charleen Richey,
Chicago Tribune,
1 May 2026
Verb
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Famously, a former RSS member assassinated one of the most famous Indians in history, Mohandas Gandhi, in 1948.—
Rob Schmitz,
NPR,
25 Apr. 2026
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Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, the archconservative patriarch of modern Japanese politics who was assassinated in 2022, was the last sitting premier to pay respects at the shrine in-person.—
Timothy Nerozzi,
The Washington Examiner,
22 Apr. 2026
Noun
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He was missed — especially vocally — since Gill’s angelic voice does not, in any way shape or form, resemble Walsh’s charmingly out-of-pitch squawk-talk style.—
Jim Harrington,
Mercury News,
25 Jan. 2026
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Toy keyboard plinks and saxophone squawks spiral over a booming racket of drums in the ether, slyly threatening to collapse, like an elaborate plate-spinning act.—
H.D. Angel,
Pitchfork,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
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One resident wakes up to a hooded stranger preparing to stab her and silently points them to her sleeping husband rather than scream.—
Alison Herman,
Variety,
29 Apr. 2026
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On the bright side for Smith, he's still getting paid millions to scream into a camera and show up courtside to stir drama.—
Alejandro Avila OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
29 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Two people who perished in a fatal Bronx blaze didn’t stand a chance after their neighbors left a door open that allowed the fire to quickly spread, officials said Friday.—
Julian Roberts-Grmela,
New York Daily News,
24 Apr. 2026
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More than two dozen sloths perished in a warehouse around two minutes from the Sloth World Orlando location between December 2024 and February 2025, the FWC said, as Fox35 reported.—
Jessica Mekles,
FOXNews.com,
23 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Thankfully, the Dark Sky movement is growing as more people become aware of the issue and learn about simple and cost-effective ways that can be embraced to reverse the course of destroying our night skies.—
Ernie Cowan,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
26 Apr. 2026
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Radioactive clouds spread, causing panic as far away as Germany and Britain; millions of litres of milk were dumped; livestock was destroyed or banned from sale.—
The Week UK,
TheWeek,
26 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Croak.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/croak. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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