wormed

verb

past tense of worm
1
as in encroached
to advance gradually beyond the usual or desirable limits neighborhoods worming into lands reserved for wildlife

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in infiltrated
to introduce in a gradual, secret, or clever way over a period of several years, the undercover agent was able to worm his way into the drug kingpin's confidence

Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in crept
to move slowly with the body close to the ground the cat silently wormed along the ground as it snuck up on the bird

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 wormed Gemini has wormed its way into virtually every Google product and service, powering email organization in Gmail, document summary in Drive, and much more. — ArsTechnica, 11 Aug. 2026 Like parasites, those jukebox musicals wormed their way into Broadway and slowly killed the medium. — Jesse Eisenberg, New Yorker, 20 July 2026 OpenAI’s ChatGPT has wormed its way into more and more parts of consumers’ lives, from work to their children’s education, and even mental health and romantic relationships. — Will McCurdy, PC Magazine, 16 May 2026 The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills alum initially believed that the bug, which eluded detection and caused countless medical issues, wormed its way into her system while filming Bravo's The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip in Morocco in early 2023. — Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 19 Feb. 2026 We as a community contain (often brain-wormed) multitudes, as evidenced by this year’s plethora gay Halloween costumes. — Abby Monteil, Them., 31 Oct. 2025 After a scramble from Baltimore’s corner kick, Kerr’s header at the back post wormed through a thicket of defenders, and Cuthbert had the final touch. — Cerys Jones, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2025 This story has wormed its way into all levels of British cultural output. — Will Collins, The Washington Examiner, 19 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wormed
  1. encroached
  2. infiltrated
  3. crept
  4. inserted
  5. crawled
  6. slipped
  7. snaked
  8. sneaked
Verb
  • In what his dad (Ed Harris) calls the decline of humanity, the club is being encroached on by pickleballers clamoring for more courts.
    — Christine Ledbetter, Chicago Tribune, 7 Aug. 2026
  • But the somatosensory cortex, the touch cortex, has like encroached upon it.
    — Quanta Magazine, Quanta Magazine, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of encroached
Verb
  • Texans have always seemed to relish their otherness, maybe even more so now that, in our age of globalization, so much sameness has infiltrated most American and international cities.
    — Christine Lennon, Condé Nast Traveler, 30 Aug. 2026
  • Musk’s officials infiltrated department after department, canceling contracts, firing employees, viewing sensitive data, and kneecapping programs related to diversity, equity, and inclusion, as well as foreign aid.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of infiltrated
Verb
  • Tech has crept into every facet of everyday life, like an invisible fog of ones and zeros.
    — Hillary Busis, Vanity Fair, 28 Aug. 2026
  • The height of this strategy shift was the Sneak Attack by Roger (SABR), in which Federer crept forward to return opponent’s serves almost on the half volley, shortening points and taking away time from his opponent.
    — Amelie Claydon, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of crept
Verb
  • But he wasn’t merely inserted into the stars’ histories as an observer like the fictional movie character, Gump.
    — Howard Cohen, Miami Herald, 25 Aug. 2026
  • The running game got another boost with the return of second-year back Jordan James, who re-inserted himself into the competition to back up Christian McCaffrey with rookie Kaelon Black, who made his preseason debut Tuesday.
    — Chris Biderman, Sacbee.com, 23 Aug. 2026
Definition of inserted
Verb
  • One roach crawled on glassware in the dishwashing area and eight were under the dishwasher.
    — David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 28 Aug. 2026
  • The mural is as if the octopus crawled out of the large vase filled with water and flowers and is helping to feed the birds.
    — Doug Ross, Chicago Tribune, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of crawled
Verb
  • Planned production was delayed by more than two years, while initial operational capability has slipped by roughly three and a half years to the third quarter of fiscal year 2030.
    — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Finally, Brent Brennan’s first year at Arizona in 2024 went so badly (the Wildcats slipped from 10-3 to 4-8) there were rumors he might get fired before Year 2.
    — Stewart Mandel, New York Times, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of slipped
Verb
  • At the Meijer gas station in Highland, several lines snaked through the parking lot and onto the main road on Wednesday.
    — Sara Machi, CBS News, 12 Aug. 2026
  • Here, too, there were echoes of Keegan’s blissful early days, when queues snaked outside the stadium hours before kick-off and every victory felt like alchemy.
    — George Caulkin, New York Times, 30 July 2026
Definition of snaked
Verb
  • The couple snuck off the next weekend and got married on May 30, 1966 at the Ringgold Baptist Church in Ringgold, Ga.
    — Hannah Sacks, PEOPLE, 26 Aug. 2026
  • While Bad Sisters snuck a nuanced portrait of sisterhood into a frantic whodunit, Youth lets its characters steep in the weirdness of ordinary life.
    — Joy Press, Vanity Fair, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of sneaked

Browse Nearby Words

worm
wormed
wormhole
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Cite this Entry

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

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