as in blow
a hard strike with a part of the body or an instrument
all it took was one hard stroke to knock the ball out of the tree
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in to caress
to touch or handle in a tender or loving manner
the young mother gently stroked the sleeping child's brow and then leaned over and kissed him
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in to massage
to praise too much
a politician with a special gift for stroking fat-cat donors
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to delete
to show (something written) to be no longer valid by drawing a cross over or a line through it
if you make a mistake on the form, just stroke it out
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of stroke
Cara Lynn Shultz, PEOPLE, 6 Nov. 2025
This is about preventing a stroke.
—NPR, 6 Nov. 2025
James McNicholas, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2025
One game, especially one so dominated by the defense, certainly isn’t enough to decide whether this is even an issue, but noted QB whisperer O’Connell has to be stroking his chin.
—John Shipley, Twin Cities, 22 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for stroke
Noun
The agonizing disease disproportionately impacts black and brown people, many of whom don’t live past their 50s and struggle with heart disease, strokes, kidney disease, and joint problems.
—Cara Lynn Shultz, PEOPLE, 6 Nov. 2025
This is about preventing a stroke.
—NPR, 6 Nov. 2025
Verb
While fans and pundits stroke their chins and ponder Arsenal’s attacking alchemy, their defensive record is perhaps taken for granted.
—James McNicholas, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2025
One game, especially one so dominated by the defense, certainly isn’t enough to decide whether this is even an issue, but noted QB whisperer O’Connell has to be stroking his chin.
—John Shipley, Twin Cities, 22 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for stroke
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stroke
Noun
-
Green Bay's offense was dealt a massive blow last week when star tight end Tucker Kraft went down with a torn ACL against the Panthers.—
Reice Shipley,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 Nov. 2025
-
The groundbreaking research penetrated the last moments of the young nobleman, who suffered a terrible 26 blows.—
Maria Mocerino,
Interesting Engineering,
10 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Simons was the offending party on Bane’s swipe, and he was beaten for an and-one dunk in transition shortly thereafter.—
Zack Cox,
Boston Herald,
8 Nov. 2025
-
Villaraigosa has not been afraid to take swipes at other Democrats in the gubernatorial primary.—
Nicole Nixon,
Sacbee.com,
5 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
The windshield repels the huddled form and the thump on the pavement sounds like a rebuke.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
7 Nov. 2025
-
The result is that the sonic boom becomes a sonic thump of 60 dB to 80 dB, or about that of a car door closing for those on the ground.—
David Szondy
October 28,
New Atlas,
28 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
The actor would be on the hit show for six seasons before his character tragically died from wounds sustained in a plane crash.—
Stephanie Sengwe,
PEOPLE,
9 Nov. 2025
-
Following an energetic performance of some of the hip hop trio’s greatest hits, Cheryl James, known by her stage name Salt, told the crowd that the women were currently in a battle for ownership of their music.—
Nicole Fell,
HollywoodReporter,
9 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
The rum punch is still the island’s best; now, there are fresh wall murals by Theodora and a covetable collection of fashion-forward merch that might just be the island’s coolest souvenir.—
Siobhan Reid,
Vogue,
11 Nov. 2025
-
Years later, Green said James baited him into the punch.—
The Athletic NBA Staff,
New York Times,
11 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Greenstein and Goldberg tried — and failed — to dissuade their boss from giving Will Smith and his company Westbrook an overall deal with the studio, arguing that the Oscar-slap controversy and a dodgy box office track record would result in more headaches than hits.—
Tatiana Siegel,
Variety,
4 Nov. 2025
-
That included two stellar stops in the waning seconds of the third with Carolina on the power play, rebuffing a slap shot and then blocking the rebound with his leg pad.—
Kyle Newman,
Denver Post,
24 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
These are still very good numbers for a 17-year-old freshman in college hockey whom NHL Central Scouting’s latest update lists at 5-foot-11 and 170 pounds.—
Scott Wheeler,
New York Times,
9 Nov. 2025
-
First, the 6-foot-3, 245-pound native of Katy, Texas, recorded a 10-yard sack of quarterback Fifita.—
Gary Bedore,
Kansas City Star,
9 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
While Merlin may be counting on Shein to increase foot traffic at the beleaguered BHV, the previous pop-ups have not resulted in knock-on sales boosts for other brands, Le Louët said.—
Rhonda Richford,
Footwear News,
5 Nov. 2025
-
Nobody expected a year ago that the India-US economic relationship will take so many knocks—of which the HIRE Bill is another reflection.—
Billal Rahman,
MSNBC Newsweek,
4 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Stroke.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stroke. Accessed 22 Dec. 2025.
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