How to Use grunt in a Sentence

grunt

1 of 2 verb
  • She grunted a few words in reply, then turned and walked away.
  • The workers were grunting with effort as they lifted the heavy furniture.
  • Phelan grunted as his rod bowed.
    — Bryan Hendricks, Arkansas Online, 25 Jan. 2026
  • The man grunted, turned over the slop pail, and sat down to remove his boots.
    — Lisa Wells, Harper’s Magazine , 15 Mar. 2023
  • Larkin grunted and said nothing.
    — Jeff Spry, Space.com, 10 Dec. 2025
  • Marcela grunted into her glass.
    — Zuzana Říhová, Literary Hub, 26 Sep. 2025
  • The rest of the camels slid their necks between the pen bars and grunted merrily.
    — Hillary Davis, Daily Pilot, 3 Aug. 2017
  • The problem is that entry-level creative jobs are much more than grunt work.
    — Nick Geisler, The Atlantic, 30 Dec. 2025
  • For six hours, the truck lurches and grunts its way back to civilization.
    — Carl Fincke, Washington Post, 6 Mar. 2020
  • Also watch for a head thrown back, shaking of the head, grunting and snorting.
    — Forrest Brown, CNN, 12 Apr. 2023
  • Non-verbal cues, like grunting to poop or pulling at their diaper.
    — Jessica Booth, Parents, 23 June 2023
  • The red hind grouper (Epinephelus guttatus) is big on grunting.
    — Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 18 Sep. 2025
  • The grunting sound is what happens when breathing is resumed.
    — Scott Lafee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 Oct. 2023
  • The bears growl and grunt at each other while using their jaws and paws as weapons to batter each other.
    — Sage Marshall, Field & Stream, 27 Feb. 2023
  • Before the splashy announcement came years of behind-the-scenes grunt work.
    — Zachary Hansen, AJC.com, 10 Apr. 2026
  • Think of the tempo, be aware of your breathing, watch yourself on screen and grunt in time with yourself.
    — Nojan Aminosharei, Men's Health, 28 Nov. 2022
  • But the gearbox sending all that grunt to the rear axle will be as much of a selling point for some street truck buffs out there.
    — Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 11 Nov. 2025
  • Ohtani grunted his way through the trouble, emptying the tank to keep a zero on the board.
    — Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2025
  • His comedy is of the loud type, full of face mugging, pratfalls and even grunting.
    — Murtada Elfadl, Variety, 7 July 2023
  • Thanks to all that grunt, the coupe could cover the quarter-mile in just 13 seconds, brand new.
    — Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 3 Nov. 2025
  • Vile — lots of climbing, groping, grabbing, grunting and dirt.
    — Linda Perillo, New York Daily News, 8 Feb. 2026
  • Stracke hung a tree stand in the buck’s wheelhouse, then grunted and rattled the giant in for a 5-yard shot.
    — Scott Bestul, Field & Stream, 1 Nov. 2023
  • Anyway, for all that ails tennis, grunting never much bothered me.
    — Jon Wertheim, SI.com, 4 Oct. 2017
  • The doctor grunted, shuffled off.
    — Sam Lipsyte, New Yorker, 19 Oct. 2025
  • And grunting for her is her way of focusing and getting in the present and creating the flow and rhythm.
    — Ravi Ubha, CNN, 30 May 2017
  • Your caveman boyfriend grunts to alert the rest of your tribe to this incredible discovery.
    — Lana Schwartz, The New Yorker, 1 Nov. 2023
  • With only minutes of shooting light left, Stenger heard rustling, grunted a few times, and the buck came right to his tree.
    — Scott Bestul, Field & Stream, 4 Dec. 2019
  • The gymnasts do not grunt with effort like the women who spin like a top and fling the hammer or discus far into the distance.
    — Washington Post, 3 Aug. 2021
  • Bev and Emily grunted their way up the truck’s narrow ramp, taking frequent breaks, and shoved the love seat against the truck’s wall.
    — J. Robert Lennon, The New Yorker, 19 Aug. 2019
  • As the group hopped and grunted, Keuilian strode through the room with a video crew, shooting a Squire promo (two takes).
    — Charles Bethea, New Yorker, 30 Mar. 2026

grunt

2 of 2 noun
  • I could hear the grunts of the movers as they lifted the heavy furniture.
  • He answered her with a grunt.
  • He's just a grunt in the attorney's office.
  • He was a grunt who worked his way up to become an officer.
  • Porsche has put all that extra grunt to good use.
    — Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 8 Sep. 2025
  • The grunt of a bull moose rolled sonorously through the pines.
    — Outdoor Life, 28 Aug. 2020
  • Matthew doesn’t speak but can grimace, shrug, grunt, nod, or frown.
    — Weike Wang, The New Yorker, 24 Jan. 2022
  • The woman gave a grunt and clicked her tongue and the dog slunk back to her.
    — Lauren Groff, The New Yorker, 27 Apr. 2021
  • The Syclone was able to do plenty with all that grunt.
    — Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 24 Oct. 2025
  • Ten hours to Charlotte to work, help teams, do the grunt jobs.
    — Dana Hunsinger Benbow, Indianapolis Star, 19 Feb. 2020
  • Whales sing, toadfish hum, cod grunt, and bearded seals trill.
    — Ed Yong, The Atlantic, 13 June 2022
  • There simply isn’t the grunt there to get the most out of an action movie.
    — Mark Sparrow, Forbes, 4 May 2022
  • From a grunt to a poem, Robin just has such a sweetness to it.
    — Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 22 June 2026
  • The crowd erupted in hearty grunts and boos after the error.
    — Kendall Staton The Washington Post, Arkansas Online, 25 May 2026
  • Let the grunts show it, especially in the red zone.
    — Troy Renck, Denver Post, 16 Aug. 2025
  • Expect a lot of kicks, punches, chases and grunts and groans.
    — Randy Myers, Mercury News, 23 May 2026
  • Their distinctive calls are a mixture of barks, growls and grunts.
    — Margaret Osborne, Smithsonian Magazine, 15 Nov. 2023
  • The only sounds left for the night were the grunts of work going into the heavy bag.
    — Tyler R. Tynes, Los Angeles Times, 27 Apr. 2023
  • Again, Larkin gave a non-committal grunt.
    — Jeff Spry, Space.com, 10 Dec. 2025
  • The mill’s prodigious low-end grunt shows up with even the slightest touch of throttle.
    — Michael Van Runkle, Robb Report, 7 June 2022
  • Murray responded with one word that came out almost as a grunt.
    — Jeff McDonald, ExpressNews.com, 25 Jan. 2021
  • If a squirrel starts barking, a blue jay squawks, or a crow starts fussing, throw a grunt that way.
    — The Editors, Outdoor Life, 2 Nov. 2020
  • Morris plopped her into her chair with a grunt of relief and pulled out the sunshade.
    — Stephen King, The Atlantic, 15 May 2026
  • Stryker grunts, wanting this to never end.
    — Ted Katauskas, Outside, 23 Sep. 2025
  • Rads themselves will tell you that note dictation is the real grunt work.
    — Alexis Kayser, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Dec. 2025
  • These tools liberate programmers from a lot of grunt work, but can add heft to a project.
    — Klint Finley, Wired, 4 Apr. 2020
  • So the grunts up front are succeeding, but the running backs are failing?
    — Troy Renck, Denver Post, 24 Sep. 2025
  • The extra grunt comes from larger turbochargers that make more boost.
    — Joey Capparella, Car and Driver, 28 Nov. 2022
  • Diesel generators can, of course, kick in if more grunt is needed.
    — Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 13 June 2026
  • All that grunt is split between all four wheels via an eight-speed dual-clutch transmission.
    — Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 10 Sep. 2025

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'grunt.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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