as in halt
a point in a struggle where neither side is capable of winning or willing to give in
with the White House controlled by one party and Congress by the other, the nation experienced four years of legislative gridlock
Synonyms & Similar Words
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as in to fill
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of gridlock
Kate Murphy, Axios, 3 Feb. 2025
The toll is designed to ease gridlock within the most congested district in the United States and encourage public transit use.
—Nathaniel Meyersohn, CNN, 12 Feb. 2025
Timothy Ryback, TIME, 26 Apr. 2024
With so many people, the traffic jam at times slowed to gridlock.
—Julie Turkewitz Federico Rios, New York Times, 14 Sep. 2023
See All Example Sentences for gridlock
Noun
The measure, signed Jan. 4, won bipartisan support in both chambers and broke through the partisan gridlock in Washington with provisions to support hunting, fishing, climbing and other sports.
—Kate Murphy, Axios, 3 Feb. 2025
The toll is designed to ease gridlock within the most congested district in the United States and encourage public transit use.
—Nathaniel Meyersohn, CNN, 12 Feb. 2025
Verb
Hitler exploited his 37% to gridlock legislative processes, to cudgel or crush the political opposition, and ultimately to undermine the country’s democratic structures.
—Timothy Ryback, TIME, 26 Apr. 2024
With so many people, the traffic jam at times slowed to gridlock.
—Julie Turkewitz Federico Rios, New York Times, 14 Sep. 2023
See All Example Sentences for gridlock
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gridlock
Noun
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Zelenskyy on Friday won the support of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan for Ukraine’s proposals to take some first steps toward stopping the war, including a halt on firing missiles, drones and bombs at energy and other civilian infrastructure.—
ILLIA NOVIKOV,
Chicago Tribune,
7 Mar. 2025
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While domestic production of weapons covers nearly 30% of Ukraine's military needs, a prolonged halt in U.S. aid would pose considerable risks for the country in the final phase of the war.—
Katya Soldak,
Forbes,
7 Mar. 2025
Verb
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But manager Alex Cora didn’t rule out another possibility to fill the outfield hole presented by Abreu’s likely absence: Kristian Campbell.—
Jen McCaffrey,
The Athletic,
8 Mar. 2025
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Powell also accused Holmes of hiring outside of existing civil service lists to fill vacancies.—
Graham Rayman,
New York Daily News,
7 Mar. 2025
Noun
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After the Spartans tied the match a little later, Menlo’s leading scorer Roya Rezaee headed in a corner kick from Krista Arreola to break the 1-1 deadlock.—
Mike Lefkow,
The Mercury News,
2 Mar. 2025
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The jury’s deadlock on McClain’s charges may give rise to another round of excuses to do nothing.—
Megan Crepeau,
Chicago Tribune,
16 Feb. 2025
Verb
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The brash freshman who spent much of the season bragging to teammates about his power corked a bat to crush balls even farther.—
Chandler Rome,
The Athletic,
20 Aug. 2024
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Pair with a bottle of wine or corked beverage of choice for an even more elevated gift.—
Rachel Fletcher,
Architectural Digest,
9 Oct. 2024
Noun
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Talks at an impasse After eight months, contract talks are at an impasse with no end in sight.—
Sun Sentinel Editorial Board,
Sun Sentinel,
26 Feb. 2025
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Hollywood is at an interesting impasse right now—and sometimes when our industry changes, that means that Black women, Black men and people of color get ousted.—
Brande Victorian,
Essence,
18 Feb. 2025
Verb
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For his big plan, Yu can use them along with geographic information system (GIS) and satellite imagery to track China’s landscape changes as urbanization spreads, as estuaries and deltas silt up, as water starts to move differently across landscapes and cityscapes.—
Erica Gies,
Scientific American,
1 Dec. 2018
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All the while, the Guadalquivir River, which allowed ships into Seville, began to silt up, forcing trade southward to the coastal town of Cádiz.—
Walker Mimms,
New York Times,
12 Jan. 2023
Noun
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The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which was created to protect Americans from financial fraud, abuse and deceptive practices, has been brought to a standstill.—
Chris Megerian,
Chicago Tribune,
19 Feb. 2025
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Alyssa Vasey of Kemmerer, Wyo., was traveling west on Interstate 80 late Friday morning when traffic came to a standstill.—
Tim Balk,
New York Times,
15 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Unlike face tapes, which temporarily smooth skin by holding it in place, true wrinkle patches pack a punch with active ingredients like retinol, peptides, and hyaluronic acid to improve skin over time.—
Christa Joanna Lee,
Allure,
6 Mar. 2025
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The expansion of Israel’s ground operations in Gaza added more pressure to global markets as investors prepare for a busy week packed with major central bank decisions and a high-stakes announcement of US bond sales.—
Lim Hui Jie,Lee Ying Shan,
CNBC,
6 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Gridlock.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gridlock. Accessed 12 Mar. 2025.
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