1
as in jerked
to move or cause to move with a sharp quick motion
she stupidly yanked the wheel while I was driving
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in pulled
to draw out by force or with effort
yanked out a tooth with a pair of pliers
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in grabbed
to separate or remove by forceful pulling
grab the other one, and let's see if we can't yank these two grocery carriages apart
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of yanked
Spurs coach Mitch Johnson could’ve yanked him for the veteran Harrison Barnes.
—
Christian Clark, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2026
Jackson’s music was also yanked from several radio stations in New Zealand, but eventually re-added.
—Amelia McDonell-Parry, Rolling Stone, 22 Apr. 2026
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen got yanked after giving up his fourth goal – at least two were eminently stoppable – for Alex Lyon.
—Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 22 Apr. 2026
Lindor, who has been the subject of criticism for his play thus far, yanked a shot into the seats, scoring Marcus Semien and Carson Benge — one of the few positives from this night.
—James O'Connell, New York Daily News, 22 Apr. 2026
As the smell intensified, Lina crossed to the front door of her apartment, undid the lock, and yanked the sticky door open.
—Danielle Parker, CBS News, 21 Apr. 2026
Hers is a life devoted to art despite the fact she was yanked from school and married off at sixteen.
—Literary Hub, 21 Apr. 2026
Burrows fell behind 3-0 to ninth hitter Victor Scott II, clawed back to 3-2, but yanked a fastball well inside.
—Matt Kawahara, Houston Chronicle, 19 Apr. 2026
Each would step up on the box, say a word or two, and then get yanked off by the police and carried to jail.
—Amelia Soth, JSTOR Daily, 15 Apr. 2026
Christian Clark, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2026
Jackson’s music was also yanked from several radio stations in New Zealand, but eventually re-added.
—Amelia McDonell-Parry, Rolling Stone, 22 Apr. 2026
Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen got yanked after giving up his fourth goal – at least two were eminently stoppable – for Alex Lyon.
—Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 22 Apr. 2026
Lindor, who has been the subject of criticism for his play thus far, yanked a shot into the seats, scoring Marcus Semien and Carson Benge — one of the few positives from this night.
—James O'Connell, New York Daily News, 22 Apr. 2026
As the smell intensified, Lina crossed to the front door of her apartment, undid the lock, and yanked the sticky door open.
—Danielle Parker, CBS News, 21 Apr. 2026
Hers is a life devoted to art despite the fact she was yanked from school and married off at sixteen.
—Literary Hub, 21 Apr. 2026
Burrows fell behind 3-0 to ninth hitter Victor Scott II, clawed back to 3-2, but yanked a fastball well inside.
—Matt Kawahara, Houston Chronicle, 19 Apr. 2026
Each would step up on the box, say a word or two, and then get yanked off by the police and carried to jail.
—Amelia Soth, JSTOR Daily, 15 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for yanked
Verb
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The plane jerked to a stop as two trucks passed just feet in front of its nose.—
Alexandra Skores,
CNN Money,
16 Apr. 2026
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We are jerked between past and present as his backstory gets filled in, one jogged memory at a time.—
Justin Chang,
New Yorker,
13 Mar. 2026
Verb
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That’s when Talley allegedly pulled the pistol out from under a blanket, shooting one officer in the face and a second in the chin, authorities said.—
Meredith Colias-Pete,
Chicago Tribune,
29 Apr. 2026
-
The Dodgers pulled within 2-1 in the eighth inning when Freddie Freeman singled with one out to put runners on the corners and Smith delivered an RBI single to right field off of right-hander Michael Petersen.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
29 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Investigators later learned Hissom and her male passenger, who was wounded, were caught in a crossfire as a group of four or five men grabbed weapons from a vehicle and began firing at each other.—
Darrell Smith,
Sacbee.com,
30 Apr. 2026
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Aristide then allegedly charged at his brother, grabbed him by the neck and forced him to the ground, according to the report.—
Mauricio Maldonado,
CBS News,
30 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Wembanyama lurched forward, toppled and slammed the right side of his face on the floor.—
Steve Henson,
Los Angeles Times,
22 Apr. 2026
-
When robots lurched, slipped, and occasionally froze mid-stride at the 2026 Beijing half-marathon on April 19, the internet quickly turned the spectacle into a meme.—
Ni Tao,
Interesting Engineering,
20 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The burglars pried open a window to get into a room on the second floor.—
Tracy Brown,
Los Angeles Times,
19 Apr. 2026
-
Kemp says everything was ransacked, doors were broken, drawers and cupboards pried open, and empty cash boxes were on display.—
Alysia Burgio,
CBS News,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Tom Holland, more celebs zap their muscles with electricity to get ripped.—
Charles Trepany,
USA Today,
1 May 2026
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Kerfoot floated a perfect saucer pass over the defender’s stick, and Carcone ripped a one-timer into the top of the net to give Utah a 4-3 lead with just over seven minutes to play.—
Jesse Granger,
New York Times,
30 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Pebbles twitched, branches waggled, cholla wiggled, weeds erupted then dried up and died.—
Alina Hartounian,
NPR,
20 Apr. 2026
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Kearse twitched briefly after the lethal drugs began entering his system but stopped moving several minutes later.—
Freida Frisaro,
Sun Sentinel,
3 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Heat is extracted and pumped into a closed-loop pipe system under the house, where it is cooled by the earth.—
Lew Sichelman,
Miami Herald,
23 Apr. 2026
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She was pronounced dead after Orange County Fire Authority firefighters extracted her from the vehicle and rushed her to a nearby hospital.—
Michele Gile,
CBS News,
23 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Yanked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/yanked. Accessed 1 May. 2026.
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