as in trick
an odd or peculiar habit
constantly playing with her hair is one of her more annoying tics
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Recent Examples of tic
During the first 30 minutes of the show, Davidson repeatedly issued loud, involuntary vocal tics that were clear to those in the audience and on clips later circulated on social media.
—
Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 8 Apr. 2026
Brooks is still wont to assume that social crises are a function of our personal habits, not economic or political injustice, and his methodological tics are the same as ever.
—Becca Rothfeld, New Yorker, 30 Mar. 2026
The incident sparked a firestorm of anger, much focussed on the BBC for not removing Davidson’s tic from its broadcast.
—Alex Ritman, Variety, 6 Mar. 2026
Once Ida is revived, Buckley is rife with tics and guttural asides, switching between rat-a-tat mobster slang and Shelley’s flowery English prose like some postmodern literary Gollum.
—David Sims, The Atlantic, 6 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for tic
Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 8 Apr. 2026
Brooks is still wont to assume that social crises are a function of our personal habits, not economic or political injustice, and his methodological tics are the same as ever.
—Becca Rothfeld, New Yorker, 30 Mar. 2026
The incident sparked a firestorm of anger, much focussed on the BBC for not removing Davidson’s tic from its broadcast.
—Alex Ritman, Variety, 6 Mar. 2026
Once Ida is revived, Buckley is rife with tics and guttural asides, switching between rat-a-tat mobster slang and Shelley’s flowery English prose like some postmodern literary Gollum.
—David Sims, The Atlantic, 6 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for tic
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tic
Noun
-
Lemon was also the Trojans’ primary return man during his sophomore and junior seasons and was even used on a trick play against Oregon this season that resulted in a 24-yard touchdown pass to then-freshman Tanook Hines.—
Haley Sawyer,
Oc Register,
24 Apr. 2026
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The trio of Pastrnak, Elias Lindholm and Geekie can be trick-or-treat and Sturm was well aware of that when the series began.—
Steve Conroy,
Boston Herald,
24 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Each has versatility and traits the Broncos like.—
Parker Gabriel,
Denver Post,
25 Apr. 2026
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That’s a combination the Chiefs have recently avoided — pass-rush traits built more on speed that length or power.—
Sam McDowell,
Kansas City Star,
25 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Researchers evaluated and recorded the same 28 characteristics for each species based on preexisting data from universities and government agencies, Nunez-Mir said.—
Madeline King,
Chicago Tribune,
24 Apr. 2026
-
Although the gravity of a black hole is intense—that’s its defining characteristic—the force drops off rapidly with distance.—
Phil Plait,
Scientific American,
24 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Meta staffers could potentially converse with and get feedback from the virtual double trained on his mannerisms, tone, public statements, and sentiments about the company’s strategy.—
Emma Burleigh,
Fortune,
28 Apr. 2026
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Jaafar effortlessly channels his uncle’s speaking voice, dance moves, mannerisms, and childlike wonder.—
Keith Murphy,
VIBE.com,
24 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
This is an older home, and some of its charms come with quirks.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
25 Apr. 2026
-
One of his quirks is collecting cologne.—
Chris Perkins,
Sun Sentinel,
24 Apr. 2026
Noun
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First there was Lil Baby and Gunna, turning his melodies into a radio rap format by ditching the idiosyncrasies.—
Alphonse Pierre,
Pitchfork,
24 Apr. 2026
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Most of the videos are gentle teasing about the idiosyncrasies of working at a bar or retreads of other viral videos.—
Lauren Chapman,
Sacbee.com,
10 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Screenwriter Craig Mazin finds a way, however, by smartly retooling Swann’s story for a younger audience, stripping out the text’s more violent eccentricities, while preserving the universally winning curiosity of the premise.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
27 Apr. 2026
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The album is full of strange, brilliant contradictions; Oklou slides masterfully between fun and eccentricity, pump and pathos.—
Sheldon Pearce,
New Yorker,
24 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Lifetime habits of saving and cautious spending are hard to break.—
Terry Savage,
Chicago Tribune,
30 Apr. 2026
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OpenAI leaned into the curious habit, choosing to highlight the goblin-forbidding prompt in a tweet.—
Frank Landymore,
Futurism,
30 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Tic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tic. Accessed 1 May. 2026.
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