convulse

Synonym Chooser

How is the word convulse different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of convulse are agitate, rock, and shake. While all these words mean "to move up and down or to and fro with some violence," convulse suggests a violent pulling or wrenching as of a body in a paroxysm.

spectators were convulsed with laughter

In what contexts can agitate take the place of convulse?

The synonyms agitate and convulse are sometimes interchangeable, but agitate suggests a violent and prolonged tossing or stirring.

an ocean agitated by storms

When could rock be used to replace convulse?

In some situations, the words rock and convulse are roughly equivalent. However, rock suggests a swinging or swaying motion resulting from violent impact or upheaval.

the whole city was rocked by the explosion

Where would shake be a reasonable alternative to convulse?

While the synonyms shake and convulse are close in meaning, shake often carries a further implication of a particular purpose.

shake well before using

Examples 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 convulse But that is exactly what the 72-year-old devout Catholic and grandmother has become to some in this northern California county — which has been convulsed by conspiracy theories about voter fraud and other extremist ideologies over the last three years. Jessica Garrison, Los Angeles Times, 2 Nov. 2024 Advertisement The Biden administration has for months urged Israel, Hezbollah and other parties to avoid a wider conflict in the region, where fighting between Israel and Hamas has already convulsed the Gaza Strip. Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 23 Sep. 2024 In exchange for $250,000 in cash, Carl is finally returned to his family, convulsing and covered in his own bodily fluids. Emma Alpern, Vulture, 2 July 2024 The country is not convulsed with riots, hyperinflation, or mass immiseration. Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 14 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for convulse 
Recent Examples of Synonyms for convulse
Verb
  • The Texas Cheerleader Murder Plot delves into a crime that shook the town of Channelview, Texas, in 1991.
    Tim Ryan, Newsweek, 18 Dec. 2024
  • Add chicken pieces to bag, a few at a time, shaking to coat.
    Karla Walsh, Better Homes & Gardens, 17 Dec. 2024
Verb
  • Corporate world shudders The logo of UnitedHealth appears on the side of one of its office buildings in Santa Ana, California, on April 13, 2020.
    Jacob Pramuk, CNBC, 9 Dec. 2024
  • For good or ill, never let anything stand in the way of a star who’s been told (shudder) to stick to character parts.
    Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 5 Dec. 2024
Verb
  • The defiance of the second track off Swift’s sixth album vibrates through Burt’s poem, which also picks up the serpentine imagery of the singer’s hard pivot to pop.
    Jennifer Harlan, New York Times, 13 Dec. 2024
  • The more effective alternative to using their hands to wash their face is that this device vibrates 7,000 times a minute in order to get deep into pores and clean them out.
    Quincy Bulin, Parents, 29 Nov. 2024
Verb
  • Your limbs, or even your entire upper body, may jerk or thrash in the process.
    Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 13 Nov. 2024
  • Yanking a zipper shut is more likely to break teeth or jerk the slider off the track.
    Joe Jackson, Outside Online, 17 Oct. 2024
Verb
  • The one man who should have been there was Daddy, but in his place stood a photographer who, trembling, held the camera and filmed these moments for Daddy.
    Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 11 Dec. 2024
  • Dramatically reenacting the scene in the special, Foxx’s legs tremble, his eyes wide.
    Malia Mendez, Los Angeles Times, 10 Dec. 2024
Verb
  • Just as the clock struck midnight on October 31, wrapping up another Halloween season, the undisputed queen of Christmas herself, Mariah Carey, struck one last terrifying blow into the hearts of her quivering subjects.
    Michael Savio, Vulture, 1 Nov. 2024
  • Some remind me of Piranesi’s imaginary prisons with their multilevel interiors diagonally slashed by staircases and shafts of sunlight, their ambiguous atmosphere quivering with both horror and exhilaration.
    Justin Davidson, Curbed, 2 Oct. 2024

Thesaurus Entries Near convulse

Cite this Entry

“Convulse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/convulse. Accessed 21 Dec. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on convulse

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