Synonyms of picked

picked 1 of 2

adjective

ˈpikt 

as in selected

singled out from a number or group as more to one's liking

a picked group of people for the project

Synonyms & Similar Words

• selected
• select
• preferred
• favorite
• chosen
• favored
• handpicked
• elect
• choice
• of choice
• cherry-picked
• first-line
• fashionable
• screened
• culled
• exclusive
• picked over
• winnowed (out)
• weeded (out)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• average
• common
• ordinary
• commonplace
• run-of-the-mill

picked

2 of 2

verb

past tense of pick

1

as in harvested

to catch or collect (a crop or natural resource) for human use

pick peas and beans from the garden for dinner

Synonyms & Similar Words

• harvested
• gathered
• reaped
• grew
• fished
• gleaned
• mowed
• sealed
• garnered
• accumulated
• cut
• captured
• foraged
• clammed
• hunted
• cropped
• shrimped
• bagged
• netted
• trapped
• whaled
• raised
• snared
• hayed

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• planted
• seeded
• sowed

2

as in chose

to decide to accept (someone or something) from a group of possibilities

I pick you as my partner

Synonyms & Similar Words

• selected
• chose
• took
• named
• elected
• preferred
• culled
• designated
• handpicked
• tagged
• cherry-picked
• opted (for)
• nominated
• singled (out)
• adopted
• tapped
• accepted
• appointed
• marked
• set
• embraced
• preselected
• fixed
• settled (on or upon)
• tabbed
• espoused

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• refused
• rejected
• declined
• turned down
• discarded
• disapproved
• repudiated
• spurned
• negatived
• jettisoned
• threw out
• threw away

3

as in provoked

to bring (something volatile or intense) into being

he seems to be trying to pick a fight

Synonyms & Similar Words

• provoked
• promoted
• raised
• triggered
• encouraged
• incited
• instigated
• brewed
• set in motion
• cultivated
• stimulated
• stirred (up)
• whipped (up)
• fermented
• abetted
• fomented
• inspired
• forwarded
• fostered
• nurtured
• motivated
• sowed
• set off
• detonated
• furthered
• excited
• roused
• set
• nourished
• activated
• advanced
• galvanized
• fired
• enlivened
• energized
• inflamed
• quickened
• invigorated
• livened (up)
• vitalized
• pepped (up)
• jazzed (up)

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• checked
• held
• discouraged
• regulated
• inhibited
• constrained
• restrained
• tamed
• curbed
• reined (in)
• settled
• calmed
• bridled
• quieted
• soothed
• subdued
• stilled
• allayed
• tranquilized

4

as in nibbled

to eat reluctantly and in small bites

still suffering from the shock of his wife's death, he could do no more than pick halfheartedly at his food

Synonyms & Similar Words

• nibbled
• pecked
• snacked
• grazed
• tasted
• noshed

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• gorged
• swilled
• pigged out
• overate
• gormandized

5

as in stabbed

to penetrate or hold (something) with a pointed object

continued to pick the block of ice until she was able to extract the shrimp

Synonyms & Similar Words

• stabbed
• punctured
• jabbed
• pierced
• stuck
• pecked
• spitted
• speared
• sliced
• poked
• impaled
• skewered
• spiked
• transfixed
• punched
• harpooned
• pinked
• lanced
• ran through
• transpierced
• gored
• cut
• riddled
• pricked
• perforated
• spindled
• thrust
• knifed
• bayoneted
• gimleted
• pronged
• piked
• pinpricked
• dirked
• poniarded
• quilled

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of picked

Verb

Asked about immigration solutions for Congress to tackle, Latino voters polled picked investigating ICE as a top priority, alongside immigration changes like a pathway to citizenship and ending the immigration detention of children and families. — Nicholas Wu, semafor.com, 8 Oct. 2026

Having picked it up for its 2025-26 season, CBS then pushed it to the following 2026-27 season. — Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 8 Oct. 2026

The papers quickly disappeared as office workers picked them up on their way home. — Arkansas Online, 8 Oct. 2026

To give you an inside scoop on what’s coming down the pike in the next few months, the automotive experts at Edmunds have picked five vehicles that promise to be well worth the wait. — ABC News, 7 Oct. 2026

Inside a Cantonese restaurant with a view of the foggy San Francisco night, a place picked by my oh-so sophisticated local cousin Noreen, plates piled with orange chicken and honey walnut shrimp paraded past me on the lazy Susan in the center. — Daniel Hernandez, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2026

The witness said Stigger then called back and told her to disregard his request because Culp came back and picked him up. — Nathan Pilling, Kansas City Star, 6 Oct. 2026

The scent evokes a vegetable garden more than a kitchen, with notes of warm soil and leafy produce picked straight from the plant. — Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Miami Herald, 6 Oct. 2026

The prime minister and chief of staff had picked the general to coordinate the military mission of flipping Hungary to the Allied side. — Literary Hub, 30 Sep. 2026

Phrases Containing picked

• picked up