shoehorned

past tense of shoehorn
as in crammed
to fit (people or things) into a tight space the organizers of the county fair shoehorned the craft booths between the midway and the farm exhibits

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 shoehorned While the non-prerecorded vocals were appreciated, his ballad felt oddly shoehorned into what was otherwise a vigorous, energetic halftime. — Melissa Ruggieri, USA Today, 19 July 2026 Too often, modern technologies, like inter-device connectivity and artificial intelligence, are shoehorned into gadgets that would be more intuitive to use, affordable, accessible, and/or durable without them. — ArsTechnica, 18 May 2026 Learning cannot be condensed into an accelerated course, shoehorned into a semester calendar, rushed and prodded along. — Peter Wayne Moe, Longreads, 26 Mar. 2026 Since then, these standalone console titles have mostly disappeared, been shoehorned into an Ultimate Team mode or moved to mobile. — Dan Bernstein, Sportico.com, 14 Mar. 2026 That bill was watered down, however, and eventually got shoehorned into the one that passed Friday. — Kristi Swartz, AJC.com, 7 Mar. 2026 Kevin isn’t any more random or inexplicably shoehorned into the story than Irene or Glem. — Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 20 Feb. 2026 In Short’s case, the flattening is particularly egregious, because the inchoate facts of her life are shoehorned into the obsessions of amateur sleuths who continue to get those facts wrong. — Literary Hub, 29 Jan. 2026 Williams is being shoehorned into a rotation that’s suddenly getting more crowded, providing coach Charles Lee with a good problem in the health department for once. — Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 16 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for shoehorned
Verb
  • Yet Abrams still won’t kvetch about being crammed into a tiny whale-stomach set with a camera crew, while a half-dozen crew members surrounding the practical gut, wielding a gimbal, tossed him around like a wet rag doll.
    — Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 16 Oct. 2026
  • In 2013, Rana Plaza, a nine-story building crammed with garment factories outside the capital Dhaka, collapsed killing 1,100 people.
    — Oscar Holland, CNN Money, 15 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • After the Longhorns stuffed Jadan Baugh for a 2-yard loss plays later, Jones sold a fake, rolled out and connected with tight end Lacota Dippre for a 7-yard score.
    — Edgar Thompson, The Orlando Sentinel, 18 Oct. 2026
  • Miami stopped on fourth down again Canes stuffed on fourth down for a second consecutive drive.
    — Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 17 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • In Malabo, Bioko’s biggest city, a team of men and women equipped with insecticide sprayers squeezed between low-rise cement buildings on a recent morning, as heavy rain drummed on aluminum roofs.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 18 Oct. 2026
  • Elevated borrowing rates and refinancing challenges (registration required) have squeezed an already difficult landscape for development financing.
    — Jill Jones, Forbes.com, 16 Oct. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Shoehorned.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shoehorned. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

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