rasp 1 of 2

as in scratch
a harsh grating sound the rusted lock opened with a rasp

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rasp

2 of 2

verb

1
as in to rub
to make smooth by friction after sawing the board in half, rasp the ends to remove any splinters

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2
as in to scratch
to pass roughly and noisily over or against a surface the sound of fingernails rasping on the blackboard makes me cringe

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3
4

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 rasp
Noun
Using a rasp grater such as a Microplane, finely zest the lemon into the bowl and gently toss the ingredients to combine. The Washington Post, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 May 2025 The engine rasps and rumbles right up to the tachometer’s 7,000-rpm redline—and beyond, in fact, since peak power arrives at 7,500 rpm. Michael Teo Van Runkle, Forbes.com, 23 Apr. 2025
Verb
City trailed 1-0 at halftime after Marcus Rashford’s rasping long-range strike in the eighth minute and a glaring miss from the prolific Haaland from barely two meters out. Steve Douglas, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 Mar. 2024 And then Elisabeth uses it, and her spine splits open, leaving her a rasping husk of flesh while an alternate self rises, in the dewy buff, to survey her taut flesh with a clinical eye in the mirror. Alison Willmore, Vulture, 20 Sep. 2024 See All Example Sentences for rasp
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rasp
Noun
  • Without this infrastructure, every applications needs to rebuild the plumbing from scratch.
    David G.W. Birch, Forbes.com, 6 July 2025
  • Order your pizza and, within five minutes, a robot would craft your pie from scratch, no human hands required.
    Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 6 July 2025
Verb
  • While the two were embracing, Hughes gently rubbed Siwa's belly, fueling the pregnancy rumors.
    Kayla Grant, People.com, 11 July 2025
  • That reportedly rubbed him the wrong way and paved the path for his departure from Phoenix this offseason.
    Bryan Toporek, Forbes.com, 10 July 2025
Verb
  • National Weather Service radar is indicated that squall bands are starting to scrape the Georgia, South Carolina, and Florida coastlines.
    Marshall Shepherd, Forbes.com, 4 July 2025
  • Avoid using any type of metal tool or spatula to scrape the surface.
    Rebecca Jones, Southern Living, 4 July 2025
Verb
  • Perhaps Trump just wanted to annoy his counterparts, especially those on the continent.
    Yeo Boon Ping, CNBC, 14 July 2025
  • But Cotton, annoyed by Hank’s indirectness and emotion, browbeats his son.
    Daniel Dockery, Vulture, 7 July 2025
Verb
  • The deceased woman was also wearing a black necklace with a cross that family said belonged to DiNapoli, according to court documents.
    Caelyn Pender, Mercury News, 11 July 2025
  • Kemp says that having the Bryan brothers and Dabrowski wearing the product adds immediate credibility but also provides value to RIA when making product decisions.
    Tim Newcomb, Forbes.com, 10 July 2025
Noun
  • The dim shake of her flashlight on the wall, the creak of the floor.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 June 2025
  • Like any old building, Larkin Lodge has creaks and drafts, but Emily thinks there’s more going on.
    Gabino Iglesias, New York Times, 30 May 2025
Verb
  • Friends of the Everglades and the Center for Biological Diversity filed a lawsuit last month seeking a temporary restraining order and a preliminary injunction to put the project on hold until legal wrangling is resolved.
    Dara Kam, Sun Sentinel, 7 July 2025
  • Paramount paid $16 million to the Trump Library fund to settle a lawsuit Trump filed against it, following itsCBS’s 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris last year, which her then-campaign rival, Trump, did not like.
    Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Time, 7 July 2025
Verb
  • Say your mother kept bugging you to change a bad habit.
    Bruce Y. Lee, Forbes.com, 11 May 2025
  • Next season is when all the little things start to bug me.
    Ryan Schwartz, TVLine, 21 Mar. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Rasp.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rasp. Accessed 19 Jul. 2025.

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