1
as in avoids
to get or keep away from (as a responsibility) through cleverness or trickery
you always try to shirk paying your fair share of the bill by claiming you "forgot" your wallet
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in neglects
to leave undone or unattended to especially through carelessness
a deadbeat who has been shirking his duty to his family for years
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in lurks
to move about in a sly or secret manner
given the multitude of auditoriums at the multiplex, it's not too difficult for underaged kids to shirk into R-rated movies
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of shirks
Nick, desperate to return to the present, shirks the doting parents and brother who long to comfort him.
—
Sam Bodrojan, IndieWire, 7 Sep. 2025
Sam Bodrojan, IndieWire, 7 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shirks
Verb
-
Human interest Sending robots to space avoids having to deal with risks to human health.—
Scott Solomon,
The Conversation,
27 Mar. 2026
-
Keeping your conversion within a range that avoids IRMAA thresholds protects your Medicare costs alongside your tax bill.—
Allison Palmer,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
27 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
But that lower average neglects the fact that fire private IIs have a higher floor salary, at $65,300, and drivers make more than the PII ceiling within the police department, at $79,000.—
Lucas Finton,
Memphis Commercial Appeal,
18 Feb. 2026
-
Like many others in his community, Awad believes the Israeli government intentionally neglects crime perpetrated against Palestinian citizens.—
Zeena Saifi,
CNN Money,
15 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
When a strange man lurks around the school asking supposedly innocent questions and the principal receives a severed human finger in the mail, the community is in an uproar.—
Lexy Perez,
HollywoodReporter,
19 Mar. 2026
-
Binary neutron stars have long been considered the best bet for deciphering what lurks within.—
Keith Cooper,
Space.com,
15 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
But even if Booker’s appearance evades the FCC’s scrutiny, the commission is closely watching TV talk programs, with The View in particular a subject of interest.—
Alex Weprin,
HollywoodReporter,
23 Mar. 2026
-
But how does one set out to write a biography about the creation of an author who not only can’t be reached, but actively evades the spotlight?—
Costa Beavin Pappas,
Los Angeles Times,
2 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Ortiz sneaks field recordings and samples into these songs, too—each adding texture to the universe of her songs and evoking the wider world that exists just outside the frame of her narration.—
Marissa Lorusso,
Pitchfork,
24 Mar. 2026
-
But some sunlight still sneaks through Earth’s atmosphere, bends around the planet and lands on the moon.—
Tiffany Acosta,
AZCentral.com,
3 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Her grim discovery ensures Toya will meet the same fate, and in the last episode, as the murderer escapes through the window, Hole discovers the killer’s final victim in the bathroom, tied by her neck to the shower.—
K.J. Yossman,
Variety,
27 Mar. 2026
-
At the best Iceland Airbnbs, nature is the number one amenity, but city escapes offer plenty of perks too.—
Erika Owen,
Architectural Digest,
26 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
After one of Javadi's patients slips through the cracks, Dana calls in an old friend with experience running a low-tech ER.—
Billie Melissa,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Mar. 2026
-
The Pleiades are at their most spectacular from October to March, after which the cluster slips ever lower in the spring sky, appearing closer to the horizon with each passing night.—
Anthony Wood,
Space.com,
24 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Anne slinks off with her husband.—
Keith Phipps,
Vulture,
25 Sep. 2025
-
Route 128 slinks through the folds of Anderson Valley like a slow river, past vineyards clinging to hillsides and orchards heavy with apple blossoms come spring.—
Lauren Mowery,
Forbes.com,
8 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Shirks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shirks. Accessed 3 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
