dredge up

phrasal verb

dredged up; dredging up; dredges up
: to start talking or thinking again about (something unpleasant that happened a long time ago)
Reporters dredged up the fact that the senator avoided the military draft.
She didn't like to dredge up bad memories.

Examples of dredge up in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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.
Joe played it, hearing his tearful wife speak of how the Vines mess dredged up, yet again, so much of the pain of losing their son. Matt Webb Mitovich, TVLine, 27 Apr. 2025 Pugh stars in the latest Marvel film in a team of anti-heroes as Yelena Belova, getting caught in a deadly trap and forced to work together on a mission that will dredge up their pasts—already, the film is receiving positive reviews. Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 23 Apr. 2025 But some residents worry that the proposal to deepen and widen the shipping channel to accommodate the massive container vessels will dredge up toxic contaminants from steel making, still buried in the bottom of the Patapsco River. Timothy B. Wheeler, Baltimore Sun, 22 Apr. 2025 Not to dredge up conspiracy theories, but it should be noted that Wednesday was veteran official Scott Foster’s first game back on the sidelines in two months. Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 7 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for dredge up

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Dredge up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dredge%20up. Accessed 5 Jun. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!