1
2
as in victim
a person or thing harmed, lost, or destroyed
he fell prey to nagging—but groundless—doubts about his wife's fidelity
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in target
a person or thing that is the object of abuse, criticism, or ridicule
that woman has a sharp tongue, and her favored prey is her long-suffering husband
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of prey
Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA TODAY, 19 Feb. 2025
Many of the sharks in this area are juveniles and fail to distinguish between humans and their prey, which includes fish, stingrays and other sharks, according to the statement.
—Katie Hunt, CNN, 11 Feb. 2025
From villains to prey, tragic backstories are mandatory — and what once felt like sweet empathy now smacks of artificial saccharine.
—Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 5 Feb. 2025
Bakker shared a number of graphs that showed that predator–prey ratios dropped over time.
—Danny Robb, JSTOR Daily, 8 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for prey
Noun
As the environment and therefore its prey changed, hyaendodonts diminished in diversity and eventually went extinct.
—Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA TODAY, 19 Feb. 2025
Many of the sharks in this area are juveniles and fail to distinguish between humans and their prey, which includes fish, stingrays and other sharks, according to the statement.
—Katie Hunt, CNN, 11 Feb. 2025
From villains to prey, tragic backstories are mandatory — and what once felt like sweet empathy now smacks of artificial saccharine.
—Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 5 Feb. 2025
Bakker shared a number of graphs that showed that predator–prey ratios dropped over time.
—Danny Robb, JSTOR Daily, 8 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for prey
Recent Examples of Synonyms for prey
Noun
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Its backstory correlates to the next-door quarry that was once used by the Inversand Company as a mining site.—
Michele Herrmann,
Forbes,
20 Feb. 2025
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But not long before, William Buckland, a reader in geology at Oxford University at the time, examined a group of 15 fossils recovered from various sites, including the Stonesfield quarry.—
Sean Mowbray,
Discover Magazine,
17 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Ultimately, in many ways, Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Musk are victims of their own success.—
Callum Booth,
Forbes,
20 Feb. 2025
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Scott spent the money, almost $470,000, at casinos, personal expenses or payments to other victims to keep the scheme afloat, prosecutors said.—
Ishani Desai,
Sacramento Bee,
20 Feb. 2025
Noun
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As part of the agreement with medical device makers, overseen by Congress, the FDA aimed to meet hiring targets for each year of the latest iteration of MDUFA.—
Michael Erman,
USA TODAY,
22 Feb. 2025
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Analyze their brand messaging, target audience, and marketing materials.—
Abdo Riani,
Forbes,
22 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Meanwhile, both sides have been reluctant to provide specific casualty figures.—
Joanna Kakissis,
NPR,
21 Feb. 2025
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No one was reported injured or killed, although the Russian military does not often disclose casualty figures.—
Kim Barker,
New York Times,
20 Feb. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Prey.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/prey. Accessed 3 Mar. 2025.
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