sucking

verb

Definition of suckingnext
present participle of suck, informal + sometimes impolite
as in smelling
to be objectionable or unsatisfactory it's amazing that a song that sucks so bad can be so popular

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 sucking It’s been a decade since the company best known for sucking up hair balls and dust bunnies blew with great force into the beauty business. — Jenny Bailly, Allure, 1 Sep. 2026 And sometimes, the novel, certainly that big 400-page tome, can be overwhelming, daunting, and time-sucking for today’s reader. — Literary Hub, 27 Aug. 2026 For instance, Democrats like Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries have become openly obsequious in sucking up to the DSA. — Peter Lucas, Boston Herald, 20 Aug. 2026 But with the Iran war both sucking away American resources and fomenting regional instability, conditions have allowed for a return of the notorious practice. — Aparajita Saxena, CNBC, 20 Aug. 2026 In 2018 a Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 fan blade snapped, shattering a window and sucking a woman’s head and torso outside of the plane. — Alexandra Skores, CNN Money, 13 Aug. 2026 This list is my small effort to stop the undertow of history from sucking up my favorite underseen shows from this uniquely abundant—and turbulent—century. — Judy Berman, Time, 11 Aug. 2026 And then the whole ecosystem around them, there's just a massive pull sucking sound for anything that can help build those things out more cost-effectively, more efficiently. — Alan Ohnsman, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026 Pests and Disease Aphids and other sap-sucking insects can drain crepe myrtle sap and spread sooty mold, while leaf spot is a fungal issue that can weaken plants, impair blooming, and leave unsightly splotches on plant leaves. — Lauren Landers, The Spruce, 4 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sucking
  1. smelling
  2. biting
Verb
  • By the end of the night — or beginning of the day — everyone leaves the bar smelling like cigarettes.
    — Amanda Rosa, Miami Herald, 2 Sep. 2026
  • Black could be licorice or blueberries, though a very dark, foul-smelling stool can flag intestine or liver issues.
    — Hanna Wickes, Sacbee.com, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of smelling
Verb
  • In a voice at once biting and contemplative, eerie and funny, Kasischke crafts poems in which nothing is ever stable or resolved.
    — The New Yorker, New Yorker, 31 Aug. 2026
  • Anything larger would’ve been biting off more than even mighty Roman, with its panoramic field of view, could readily chew.
    — Adam Kovac, Scientific American, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of biting

Browse Nearby Words

suck in
sucking
sucking in
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Sucking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sucking. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on sucking

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about sucking

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