1
as in jerking
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 pulling
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 grabbing
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
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of yanking
After Correa doubled leading off the first against Tanner Bibee, Alvarez followed by yanking a curveball from the right-hander 422 feet over the wall in right field to give the Astros a 2-0 lead that held up for nine innings.
—
ABC News, 22 Apr. 2026
Supporters in labor unions and in the House soon began yanking their endorsements.
—Michelle Cottle, Mercury News, 16 Apr. 2026
Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra believed Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball should have been ejected after yanking on star center Bam Adebayo’s foot, causing an injury to his lower back.
—Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 15 Apr. 2026
The video shows the pacing man pounding on the front door and attempting to kick it in before yanking down a hanging doorbell fixture near the entryway and hurling it at the doorway.
—Christina Coulter, PEOPLE, 13 Apr. 2026
But cystic fibrosis was a tether, yanking O’Neal back home for treatments.
—Courtney Crowder, USA Today, 10 Apr. 2026
Chelsea were a few seconds from going out of the quarter-finals (losing 3-2 on aggregate) when Arsenal full-back Katie McCabe halted a run by Chelsea’s USWNT forward Alyssa Thompson by grabbing Thompson’s ponytail and yanking it, as shown above.
—Phil Hay, New York Times, 2 Apr. 2026
Keep the movement coming from your ribs, rotating, not by yanking your neck.
—Jakob Roze, Health, 1 Apr. 2026
In other words, eliminating them from the animal kingdom would be like yanking an entire tier of Jenga blocks out of the middle of the tower.
—Jackie Flynn Mogensen, Scientific American, 15 Mar. 2026
ABC News, 22 Apr. 2026
Supporters in labor unions and in the House soon began yanking their endorsements.
—Michelle Cottle, Mercury News, 16 Apr. 2026
Miami Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra believed Charlotte Hornets guard LaMelo Ball should have been ejected after yanking on star center Bam Adebayo’s foot, causing an injury to his lower back.
—Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 15 Apr. 2026
The video shows the pacing man pounding on the front door and attempting to kick it in before yanking down a hanging doorbell fixture near the entryway and hurling it at the doorway.
—Christina Coulter, PEOPLE, 13 Apr. 2026
But cystic fibrosis was a tether, yanking O’Neal back home for treatments.
—Courtney Crowder, USA Today, 10 Apr. 2026
Chelsea were a few seconds from going out of the quarter-finals (losing 3-2 on aggregate) when Arsenal full-back Katie McCabe halted a run by Chelsea’s USWNT forward Alyssa Thompson by grabbing Thompson’s ponytail and yanking it, as shown above.
—Phil Hay, New York Times, 2 Apr. 2026
Keep the movement coming from your ribs, rotating, not by yanking your neck.
—Jakob Roze, Health, 1 Apr. 2026
In other words, eliminating them from the animal kingdom would be like yanking an entire tier of Jenga blocks out of the middle of the tower.
—Jackie Flynn Mogensen, Scientific American, 15 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for yanking
Verb
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Tony Fauci was not just jerking the country around.—
David Blumenthal,
Fortune,
24 Mar. 2026
-
The clip on TikTok shows the seat jerking abruptly, apparently from forceful pushes by the person seated behind her.—
Kelly McGreal,
FOXNews.com,
13 Mar. 2026
Verb
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All of which is great news for Adam Silver and everyone else pulling a paycheck from the league.—
Charles Bethea,
New Yorker,
26 Apr. 2026
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Seated calf raises can lower post-meal blood sugar spikes by gradually pulling glucose from the bloodstream.—
Mira Miller,
Verywell Health,
26 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The Jaguars used their first pick of the NFL draft to land the blocking tight end Friday night, grabbing him in the second round with the 56th selection.—
Mark Long,
The Orlando Sentinel,
25 Apr. 2026
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The Seahawks stayed put yet again at the end of the second round, grabbing TCU safety Bud Clark with the 64th pick.—
Michael-Shawn Dugar,
New York Times,
25 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Curry’s body began convulsing and twitching with increasing severity, consistent with him sustaining a traumatic brain injury from being punched in the face, documents state.—
Deborah Laverty,
Chicago Tribune,
29 Mar. 2026
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Afternoon Ben Thanh Market is Hồ Chí Minh’s biggest market – a vast maze of 1,500 stalls selling everything from still-twitching fish to electronics and souvenirs.—
Tamara Hinson,
Condé Nast Traveler,
27 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The attendant and one of the passengers worked together at prying open the baggage compartment door while the other passenger crawled around the floor, searching in the thick smoke for a cellphone to try to use as a flashlight, according to the statement transcripts.—
Angie DiMichele,
Sun Sentinel,
24 Apr. 2026
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Reinforce your privacy fence by layering new fencing on top of existing fencing for an extra layer of protection that will help insulate your backyard from noise as well as prying eyes.—
Kristin Hohenadel,
The Spruce,
24 Apr. 2026
Verb
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During a late-night safety test, the power plant’s Number 4 reactor exploded, tearing through the building and sending a column of radioactive material into the sky.—
Benjamin Mack-Jackson,
The Orlando Sentinel,
30 Apr. 2026
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The one that was about ambition and friendship and celebrating women, not tearing them down.—
Natalia Senanayake,
PEOPLE,
30 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Having the peace of mind that your top won’t distract you by shifting or tugging makes bodysuits a worthwhile office attire investment.—
Kevin Huynh,
InStyle,
12 Apr. 2026
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The nylon fabric is structured but not stiff, with enough stretch to handle a scramble without tugging at your knees.—
Francesca Krempa,
Travel + Leisure,
12 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Anthropic and OpenAI have accused the startup of illegally extracting capabilities – or distilling – from their models.—
John Liu,
CNN Money,
24 Apr. 2026
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These developments signal a shift toward circular systems that reduce emissions while extracting value from existing materials.—
Sujita Sinha,
Interesting Engineering,
22 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Yanking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/yanking. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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