trudging

verb

present participle of trudge
1
as in shuffling
to move heavily or clumsily flooded residents who were forced to trudge through waist-deep water

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2
as in stumbling
to proceed or act clumsily or ineffectually no expert on taxes, I spent the whole weekend trudging through government forms

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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 trudging Many residents of Northern Indiana are trudging the long road to recovery more than a week after storms cause wide-ranging power outages. — Aubrey Wright, IndyStar, 20 Aug. 2026 The women had come so far together over the last three decades and were now eagerly trudging forward, side-by-side, to whatever came next. — Tiney Ricciardi, Denver Post, 30 July 2026 And props to Cadillac for trudging through its first F1 season. — Madeline Coleman, New York Times, 28 July 2026 The scene opened with a cloaked figure trudging through dark city streets as ominous holiday tunes emanate from the surrounding businesses. — Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 23 July 2026 In its first-ever World Cup appearance, the team — hailing from an archipelago off the western coast of Africa with around 530,000 inhabitants — has left its fans giddy with success and its opponents, from the traditional powers of Spain and Uruguay, trudging off the field in shock. — Harmeet Kaur, CNN Money, 24 June 2026 But recently, for Giants fans and rising star Bryce Eldridge, the sight of Lee trudging back to the dugout unsuccessful has been a bit of an uncommon sight. — Sean Campbell, Sacbee.com, 10 June 2026 Like the experience of trudging through a snowstorm with pink eye, and, days later, standing atop a mountain and using those same eyes to absorb the light of so many stars. — Alexandra Oliva june 1, Literary Hub, 1 June 2026 Argentine investigators trudging through mud to retrieve the dead rats declined to speak to journalists about their work. — ABC News, 19 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for trudging
  1. shuffling
  2. stumbling
  3. stomping
  4. struggling
Verb
  • Summary The Chicago Cubs are currently shuffling their infield due to Dansby Swanson's oblique injury, moving Nico Hoerner to shortstop and Pedro Ramírez to second base.
    — Peter Chawaga, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026
  • Keeping your eye on Bredeson is as hard as tracking a ball beneath shuffling cups.
    — Alec Lewis, New York Times, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of shuffling
Verb
  • The teddy bears, the stumbling answers, the whole morning in the Cotillion was a mess.
    — Noah Shachtman, Vanity Fair, 25 Aug. 2026
  • Calhoun, who moved to Kansas City from Ames, Iowa, in 2016, started photography during the pandemic after stumbling across a photography video on YouTube.
    — Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of stumbling
Verb
  • Their father, Jamie, always seemed to be around, smiling and shouting and stomping his feet.
    — Brady Brickner-Wood, New Yorker, 26 Aug. 2026
  • Hello Kitty is stomping back to McDonald's in full kaiju form.
    — Chad Murphy, Cincinnati Enquirer, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of stomping
Verb
  • The papers served to underline how central banks are struggling to keep up with challenges introduced by technology.
    — Maria Eloisa Capurro, Fortune, 29 Aug. 2026
  • The longer the current situation continues, the greater the strain on an economy already struggling with shortages, inflation and restrictions on trade.
    — Hamidreza Azizi, Time, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of struggling

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trudges
trudging
true
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Cite this Entry

“Trudging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/trudging. Accessed 1 Sep. 2026.

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