1
as in crumpled
to create (as by crushing) an irregular mass of creases in
scrunched up the shirt and tossed it in the laundry
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of scrunched
The beauty of a great lightweight puffer is that it can be worn as an insert or an overcoat, and it can even be tightly scrunched up into a tiny ball to be used as a makeshift travel pillow on the plane.
—
Michelle Tchea, Travel + Leisure, 7 Dec. 2025
Unlike a typical golden, her dog sports an underbite and scrunched nose, giving her a uniquely charming expression.
—Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 Nov. 2025
Sheppard won’t have as scrunched a floor to run the offense.
—Fred Katz, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2025
The cast scrunched out easily, leaving curls soft and natural-looking.
—Malia Griggs, Glamour, 30 Sep. 2025
Kavya tugs on my arm, her nose is scrunched up, eyebrows discombobulated.
—Navdeep Singh Dhillon, Parents, 21 Aug. 2025
An image of his little face, scrunched in discomfort, but no sound coming from his little mouth, was instantly clear.
—Zoë Jones, Vogue, 14 Aug. 2025
GloRilla tapped into a too-cool-for-school uniform aesthetic at the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards, styling plaid with black peep-toe platform shoes and scrunched white socks.
—Maggie Clancy, Footwear News, 3 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for scrunched
Verb
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Then, after Barnes had dragged Newcastle level and the home side had built up attacking pressure, Thiaw crumpled under a challenge from Calvert-Lewin inside his own box, stuck out an arm and handled Jaka Bijol’s nod-down.—
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The Nuggets were playing the Miami Heat when Jokic crumpled to the ground holding his knee at the tail end of the first half.—
Verb
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As the lead guide crouched down, an elephant walked around a bend in the river, maybe 30 metres ahead of us.—
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Matthews crouched with his back to the rest of the play, a step away from the goal line along the boards.—
Verb
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Except for that victory at the Etihad — Amad was in a position to cause such damage because Amorim played him in an unusual role infield, which City never got to grips with — those moments came when Amorim essentially tore up his system, went rogue, and United scraped their way over the line.—
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Hawk told investigators Cruz was upset with him because Hawk had scraped his vehicle, according to the probable cause statement.—
Verb
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As Nelson spoke, Rubio took the note back and folded it up before tucking it away.—
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Knitted garments are best stored folded to prevent stretching.—
Verb
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Mike Lee of Utah, Rick Scott of Florida and Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, withheld their votes and huddled with Thune at the back of the chamber.—
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Senate Republicans huddled on Friday afternoon after Schumer’s floor speech but seemed to see no immediate path forward.—
Verb
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The Carolina Panthers gritted out a 13-6 win over the New York Jets on the road thanks to a two-interception day from Jaycee Horn, a turnover-free performance from the offense and a close-to-flawless day on special teams.—
Verb
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The metallized effect leaves the pants looking—well—completely wrinkled.—
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Instead of throwing it out, use old or leftover tissue paper as packing material, in crafts, and to keep items from becoming wrinkled or tangled.—
Verb
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Two bills returned into Rafiq’s hand upon his pointing out that the wood panelling on the side of the radio was scratched and that the knob felt rather flimsy.—
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Her feet were red and bruised, her face and neck were scratched and bruises that appeared to be finger imprints were visible on her neck, the affidavit says.—
Cite this Entry
“Scrunched.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scrunched. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
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