gag
verb
\
Definition of gag
(Entry 1 of 2)
gag
nounDefinition of gag (Entry 2 of 2)
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Synonyms for gag
Synonyms: Verb
barf, heave, hurl, puke, retch, spew, spit up, throw up, upchuck, vomit
Synonyms: Noun
boff (or boffo), boffola, crack, drollery, funny, giggle [chiefly British], jape, jest, joke, josh, laugh, nifty, one-liner, pleasantry, quip, rib, sally, waggery, wisecrack, witticism, yuk (or yuck) [slang]
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Examples of gag in a Sentence
Verb
The government is trying to gag the press. the terrible smell of rotting fish made me gagNoun
The movie relies on simpleminded gags for laughs. They hid his clothes as a gag. They tied up the hostages and put gags in their mouths. The government is trying to put a gag on the press.
Recent Examples on the Web: Verb
Nkrumah’s detractors accuse him of running down Ghana’s economic gains at independence, gagging the press and being an authoritarian. — Akwasi Kwarteng Amoako-gyampah, Quartz Africa, "The “tragic error” that led to Kwame Nkrumah becoming one of Africa’s great independence leaders," 7 Aug. 2019 His detractors accuse him of progressively running down Ghana’s economic gains at independence, gagging the press, curtailing the freedom of speech and being an authoritarian. — Akwasi Kwarteng Amoako-gyampah, Quartz Africa, "The “tragic error” that led to Kwame Nkrumah becoming one of Africa’s great independence leaders," 7 Aug. 2019 Running down the middle of some street in Lynn, crying, laughing, choking, gagging. — Ted Gartland, BostonGlobe.com, "Photographer rolls through the decades with the Stones," 3 July 2019 And don’t forget about the ominous ending: that bound and gagged bloody guy out wandering in the desert? — Sydney Bucksbaum, EW.com, "Hulu's Veronica Mars revival binge recap for every episode," 19 July 2019 The notion of a Zappa presidency might seem unbelievable enough to make conservatives want to gag — with or without as spoon. — San Diego Union-Tribune, "That time Frank Zappa considered running for president with H. Ross Perot as his veep," 9 July 2019 So refused to do so and was gagged, according to the report. — Aritz Parra, The Seattle Times, "Spain: FBI offered data stolen in North Korean Embassy raid," 27 Mar. 2019 The sheriff kept most details of the pre-attack prowlings and the nature of the rapes themselves secret _ pulling news editors and station managers into a private meeting to gag media coverage. — Tribune News Service, oregonlive.com, "The Man in the Window: The attacker lingered in houses as he raped, tortured women (Part Three)," 23 June 2019 The Astros have now suffered six straight, running the gamut in ways to gag winnable games. — Chandler Rome, Houston Chronicle, "Astros fall to Yankees for 6th straight loss," 21 June 2019Recent Examples on the Web: Noun
This will continue to function effectively as a gag rule. — Shari Rudavsky, Indianapolis Star, "'Devastating for women': How Planned Parenthood funding battle could affect Indiana," 22 Aug. 2019 Even though Planned Parenthood has pulled out of Title X, the fight against the gag rule continues. — Erica Gonzales, Harper's BAZAAR, "How Planned Parenthood's Loss of Title X Funding Will Affect 1.5 Million Low-Income Women," 21 Aug. 2019 For the administration, the gag rule’s primary purpose appears clear. — Melissa Gira Grant, The New Republic, "Trump’s Title X Restrictions Are Nothing Short of Coercion," 20 Aug. 2019 The Trump administration’s gag rule will reverberate across the country. — Rachel Epstein, Marie Claire, "How to Donate to Planned Parenthood Now That It Won't Receive Title X Funding," 19 Aug. 2019 The playwright also tends to use running gags that don't pay off, such as the adults constantly being interrupted by unseen people looking for the bathroom. — Frank Scheck, The Hollywood Reporter, "'Make Believe': Theater Review," 16 Aug. 2019 The House passed a gag rule that banned submission of petitions to Congress opposing slavery. — Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, "The Pelosi-Versus-Squad Paradigm," 18 July 2019 The gag ends with a punch line about possibly changing a new song’s title so it won’t be misunderstood. — Joseph Peschel | For The Oregonian/oregonlive, oregonlive.com, "Chuck Klosterman’s new short story collection ranges from topical tidbits to questionable gimmicks," 28 July 2019 Yes, those who love comics will thrill to the throwaway gags. — Peter Rubin, WIRED, "Amazon's The Boys Tests the Limits of Superhero Fatigue," 26 July 2019These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'gag.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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