Search more than 275,000 synonyms, antonyms, related words, and idiomatic phrases. The thesaurus is more than just a list of synonyms; it is your guide to more precise and effective use of language.

synonym

noun

syn·​o·​nym ˈsi-nə-ˌnim 

1

: one of two or more words or expressions of the same language that have the same or nearly the same meaning in some or all senses

2

a

: a word or phrase that by association is held to embody something (such as a concept or quality)

a tyrant whose name has become a synonym for oppression

b

: metonym

3

: one of two or more scientific names used to designate the same taxonomic group compare homonym

synonymic

ˌsi-nə-ˈni-mik 

adjective

or less commonly synonymical

ˌsi-nə-ˈni-mi-kəl 

synonymity

ˌsi-nə-ˈni-mə-tē 

noun

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Some Differences Between Synonyms and Antonyms

The English language (and, we may presume, many other languages) has both antonyms and synonyms. There are many more words with synonyms than there are words with antonyms, since many things exist which do not have an opposite (the word sandwich, for instance, may be said to have synonyms in the words hoagie, grinder, submarine, and many other words, but there is no opposite of sandwich). Antonym is also a much more recent addition to English than synonym is; it first appeared in the 1860s, whereas synonym has been used for more than 500 years. Additionally, both nouns have adjectival forms: synonymous and antonymous. Synonymous, which is often used loosely ("She has become synonymous with good taste"), is the more common of the two.

Examples of synonym in a Sentence

I very much enjoyed the chapter on obscenity, which asks the difficult question of how words deemed taboo differ from their inoffensive synonyms …  . It can't obviously be the referent of the term, since that is the same, and it isn't merely that the taboo words are more accurately descriptive … —Colin McGinn, The New York Review of Books, 27 Sept. 2007

The debris hurtled by so fast that the New York Times editorial page seemed to run out of synonyms for disgust, revulsion and abuse. —Michael Duffy et al., Time, 5 Mar. 2001

"Hollywood" is not, of course, a place. Nor is it a synonym for the entertainment business. There are upstanding citizens who make their living in that field. —P. J. O'Rourke, Republican Party Reptile, 1987

“Small” and “little” are synonyms.

Recent Examples on the Web

Just the opposite—even as the company has turned its product into a synonym for its category, the way every MP3 player was an iPod, Amazon keeps steaming ahead, making new devices. —David Pierce, WIRED, 5 May 2016

Earlier, the term had generally been taken as a dramatic synonym for nuclear weapons or weapons of similar destructive capacity that might be developed in the future. —John Mueller, Foreign Affairs, 30 Apr. 2013

And though sustainability is occasionally a synonym for sacrifice, as pointed out by Chua, Philips doesn’t think of Proclaim as making compromises but rather making intentional choices. —Alexandra Harrell, Sourcing Journal, 2 Oct. 2024

More recently, however, both the manosphere and the alt-right have adopted the term cuck as a more general synonym for weakness, desperation and foolishness. —Brooke Scelza, Scientific American, 19 Sep. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English sinonyme, from Latin synonymum, from Greek synōnymon, from neuter of synōnymos synonymous, from syn- + onyma name — more at name

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

synonym

noun

syn·​onym

ˈsin-ə-ˌnim

: a word having the same or almost the same meaning as another word in the same language

synonymity

ˌsin-ə-ˈnim-ət-ē

noun

Medical Definition

synonym

noun

syn·​onym ˈsin-ə-ˌnim 

: a taxonomic name rejected as being incorrectly applied or incorrect in form

synonymity

ˌsin-ə-ˈnim-ət-ē 

noun

plural synonymities