How to Use pry in a Sentence

pry

noun
  • Fresh pry marks were found on the outside of the window, and the lock was bent.
    Sun-Sentinel.com, 6 Feb. 2018
  • Tante Malkeh pries open the girl’s mouth, and, her old eyes lighted up in their sunken depths.
    Abigail Deutsch, Harper's magazine, 22 July 2019
  • There were pry marks and broken wood pieces on the door, but no suspects.
    Law Enforcement, The Denver Post, 6 June 2017
  • Officers found pry marks and scratches on the front doors of a 1999 Ford there.
    Irv Leavitt, chicagotribune.com, 26 June 2017
  • Pry marks were found on a door at a home; no one entered, and nothing was stolen.
    Washington Post, 10 May 2017
  • The employee then struck the smaller dog with the plastic handle of the pry bar.
    Howard Cohen, miamiherald, 22 Feb. 2018
  • The damage appears to have been caused by a pry bar type object.
    Houston Chronicle, 2 Jan. 2018
  • The master bedroom had also been ransacked and pry marks were found on the sliding glass door at the rear of the home.
    chicagotribune.com, 28 Oct. 2019
  • Then, with a small pry bar, push the two remaining pieces up from the fasteners.
    Jeanne Huber, Washington Post, 10 Mar. 2023
  • The door had pry marks, and the roof and equipment also were damaged, according to the report.
    Jennifer James Correspondent, Houston Chronicle, 6 Sep. 2019
  • There were pry marks on two of the cars and the driver's side door lock and ignition were damaged on a 2005 Chrysler Sebring.
    Jane Ford-Stewart, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 30 Aug. 2017
  • If necessary, slip a pry bar between the last row and baseboard.
    Joesph Truini, Popular Mechanics, 8 Dec. 2019
  • Officers arrived and found what appeared to be a pry mark on the back door of the residence.
    oregonlive.com, 17 July 2019
  • An officer observed pry marks on the east entry door of the building.
    Jesse Wright, chicagotribune.com, 13 Apr. 2018
  • There’s also a butt-end pry bar and a notch on the spine of the blade for hooking cordage or scoring materials.
    Justin Park, Popular Mechanics, 7 July 2023
  • Oddly, the best chance of the half went to the Socceroos, but one gets the sense that France has the talent to sort this out an pry open the defense as Australia tires in the second half.
    Christopher Clarey, New York Times, 17 June 2018
  • Carefully pry up the shoe molding using a thin pry bar.
    Joesph Truini, Popular Mechanics, 26 Jan. 2017
  • Banks told police that someone had fired a gun during the fight and that his pregnant sister had been hit with sticks and a pry bar.
    Vic Ryckaert, Indianapolis Star, 17 Apr. 2018
  • Pry marks were on some of those vehicles, consistent with the size of the pry bar recovered, the complaint said.
    Karen Pilarski, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 19 July 2019
  • Add Beal, a 26-year-old shooting guard in his prime, and Denver pries open its championship window for the next five years.
    Jeff Bailey, The Denver Post, 10 July 2019
  • Three customers intervened and Dockery left with the pry bar in tow, police said.
    Shane Dixon Kavanaugh, OregonLive.com, 18 Jan. 2018
  • Two technicians in red hard hats on top of a lift tower muscled it back into place with pry bars.
    Gregory Thomas, San Francisco Chronicle, 7 Nov. 2021
  • As the truck entered a nearby Interstate 94 on-ramp, the second safe fell out, along with a pry bar and sledgehammer.
    Tresa Baldas, Detroit Free Press, 9 July 2019
  • When the first firetruck arrived at 11:21 a.m., at least two firefighters dived into the river, swam down to the van and tried to break the passenger window with a pry bar.
    Savannaheadens, oregonlive, 6 Apr. 2023
  • Our winter has been characterized by a number of freeze-and-thaw cycles that have acted like a pry bar on the cracks in our streets.
    Robert King, Indianapolis Star, 1 Mar. 2018
  • Police reported seeing no pry marks or damage to the door.
    Brian Lisik/special To Cleveland.com, cleveland.com, 24 July 2017
  • In terms of tools and gear, the kit features one for gas and water shutoff, a combo flashlight radio, a utility knife, and a pry bar.
    Rachel Klein, Popular Mechanics, 2 June 2022
  • Harvest those carefully using a strong knife or small pry bar.
    Wes Siler, Outside Online, 9 Mar. 2021
  • In most of the burglaries, the suspects broke into homes through a rear window, either breaking through the glass or using a pry tool to gain entry.
    Adrian Rodriguez, The Mercury News, 18 Sep. 2019
  • Three policemen crouched behind a low concrete wall with several small holes that had been made with a pry bar and a mallet.
    Luke Mogelson, The New Yorker, 6 Feb. 2017

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'pry.' 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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