1
as in grunting
speech that is not clear enough to be understood
preoccupied with what he was doing, the mechanic gave only a grunt when I asked when the car would be ready
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2
as in laborer
a person who does very hard or dull work
we have an opening in the warehouse if you don't mind doing grunt work
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to mutter
to speak softly and unclearly
was so absorbed with the video game that when asked what he wanted for dinner, he just grunted
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Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of grunt
Dan Pompei, The Athletic, 26 Aug. 2024
There’s no dialogue, at least none decipherable to human ears — everything is a symphony of meows, woofs, squawks, grunts, squeaks, squeals and simian cries.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 20 Nov. 2024
Matthew Futterman, The Athletic, 4 Aug. 2024
But Elvis Presley’s grunting granddaughter isn’t even the most outrageous contributor to the score.
—Scott Huver, Deadline, 2 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for grunt 
Noun
While Jim was cashing NFL checks, John scraped by as a coaching grunt at five colleges, catching his break when Ray Rhodes hired him to lead the special teams with the Eagles.
—Dan Pompei, The Athletic, 26 Aug. 2024
There’s no dialogue, at least none decipherable to human ears — everything is a symphony of meows, woofs, squawks, grunts, squeaks, squeals and simian cries.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 20 Nov. 2024
Verb
The only way Alcaraz could survive was with one of his high-decibel grunting forehands that lashed into the deepest corner of the court.
—Matthew Futterman, The Athletic, 4 Aug. 2024
But Elvis Presley’s grunting granddaughter isn’t even the most outrageous contributor to the score.
—Scott Huver, Deadline, 2 Nov. 2024
See all Example Sentences for grunt
Recent Examples of Synonyms for grunt
Noun
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Over nine months, these big cats systematically attacked workers’ camps at night, dragging victims—who included African laborers, Indian railway workers and even camp supervisors—into the darkness.Scott Travers, Forbes, 12 Jan. 2025
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Hopeful men lined up, waiting for construction jobs that would open when laborers inevitably died on the job.Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 5 Jan. 2025
Verb
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The soldiers muttered encouragement; their horses nickered.Tom Vanden Brook, USA TODAY, 6 Jan. 2025
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Philippe Myers knelt on the side of Canada’s busiest highway and muttered a few curse words about his luck.Joshua Kloke, The Athletic, 4 Jan. 2025
Noun
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In desperate 911 calls, workers describe gunman, deadly shootout at Broward Transit center Whether a dangerous call ends with officers shooting or successfully de-escalating often depends on the responding officer’s disposition, said Philip Sweeting, retired Boca Raton Deputy Chief of Police.Angie DiMichele, Sun Sentinel, 10 Jan. 2025
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Rudy Giuliani is set to appear in a Washington, D.C., federal courtroom Friday as a federal judge considers a request from two Georgia election workers to hold the former New York City mayor in contempt for allegedly continuing to defame them in violation of a court order.Robert Legare, CBS News, 10 Jan. 2025
Verb
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He was seen whispering with his attorney, Thomas Dickey, glancing at reporters and mumbling to himself at the Blair County Court hearing.Michael Dorgan, Fox News, 13 Dec. 2024
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When city officials mumble pieties and let lifesaving street designs get bogged down in endless studies.Justin Davidson, Curbed, 13 Nov. 2024
Noun
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Recent whispers from Washington suggest that tariffs are unlikely to be broad.Ganesh Rao, CNBC, 16 Jan. 2025
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Veteran journalist Kim Osorio appears in the doc and says that there were whispers that Porter was a victim of Combs’ abuse, and an attorney for a client who sued Combs says her client witnessed acts of violence against Porter.Steven J. Horowitz, Variety, 13 Jan. 2025
Verb
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All the other drives ended in punts – 11 to be exact – as the Levi’s Stadium crowd began to murmur about the lack of scoring.Scott Thompson, Fox News, 13 Dec. 2024
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Additionally, lawmakers across the spectrum have begun to murmur about the necessity of a resignation from Macron if the Assembly has any chance of passing legislation.Timothy Nerozzi, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 5 Dec. 2024
Verb
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One daughter then raises her hand near her mouth and appears to mouth something to the vice president.Dan Perry, Newsweek, 4 Jan. 2025
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Fike doesn’t mouth along to the songs, make distinct markers of when one ends and another begins, or even mention the titles of any of them.Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 24 Apr. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Grunt.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/grunt. Accessed 21 Jan. 2025.
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