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Synonym Chooser

How is the word discontinue distinct from other similar verbs?

Some common synonyms of discontinue are cease, desist, quit, and stop. While all these words mean "to suspend or cause to suspend activity," discontinue applies to the stopping of an accustomed activity or practice.

we have discontinued the manufacture of that item

When might cease be a better fit than discontinue?

In some situations, the words cease and discontinue are roughly equivalent. However, cease applies to states, conditions, or existence and may add a suggestion of gradualness and a degree of finality.

by nightfall the fighting had ceased

When can desist be used instead of discontinue?

While the synonyms desist and discontinue are close in meaning, desist implies forbearance or restraint as a motive for stopping or ceasing.

desisted from further efforts to persuade them

When is it sensible to use quit instead of discontinue?

The meanings of quit and discontinue largely overlap; however, quit may stress either finality or abruptness in stopping or ceasing.

the engine faltered, sputtered, then quit altogether

When could stop be used to replace discontinue?

The words stop and discontinue can be used in similar contexts, but stop applies to action or progress or to what is operating or progressing and may imply suddenness or definiteness.

stopped at the red light

Example 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 discontinue Parents and teachers fear a new state law that has required universities to discontinue a number of degrees, including many in elementary and secondary education, will worsen the teacher shortage in Indiana. Tory Basile, IndyStar, 7 Oct. 2025 By 1958, though, as automotive regulators became concerned with large car brands' associations with racing, the FirePower engine was discontinued. Liam Rappleye, USA Today, 6 Oct. 2025 But the winds of change have been swirling around Chili’s, and beloved menu items of years past have been discontinued in order to simplify and streamline the restaurant’s production. Abigail Wilt, Southern Living, 6 Oct. 2025 Both products have since been discontinued, and the company has now announced the much more sophisticated Fluid Pro AI. New Atlas, 6 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for discontinue
Recent Examples of Synonyms for discontinue
Verb
  • Eventually, the extended family gatherings ceased altogether.
    Elizabeth Wolfe, CNN Money, 12 Oct. 2025
  • Eventually, though, the wins and losses cease to matter.
    Paul Solotaroff, Rolling Stone, 12 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Trouble ahead Cernea’s decision to switch carriers hints at the worst-case scenario for UPS, which is that people could abandon the company.
    Kayla Steinberg, NBC news, 10 Oct. 2025
  • But it should be noted that people abandoning religion usually do so less vocally than those joining up.
    Big Think, Big Think, 9 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • But her six-figure salary didn’t stop her from using the Foundation as her personal piggy bank, records show.
    Michelle Marchante, Miami Herald, 12 Oct. 2025
  • Witkoff, Rubio, and Kushner then streamlined the proposal to a two-phase structure—first, a ceasefire and exchange of hostages and prisoners to stop the fighting; second, a framework for Gaza's future, including disarmament and a technocratic transitional government.
    Eric Cortellessa, Time, 11 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • The closure has halted routine government operations, shuttered Smithsonian museums and other landmark cultural institutions and left airports scrambling with flight disruptions, all injecting more uncertainty into an already precarious economy.
    Jason Ma, Fortune, 13 Oct. 2025
  • This condition is primarily caused by genetic defects that severely disrupt or halt the complex process of sperm production, known as spermatogenesis.
    Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 13 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Staff at The Free Press are eager to start working with CBS News; reporter Olivia Reingold appeared on CBS News Friday morning to discuss her report that anonymous NYPD officers had been threatening to quit the force if Zohran Mamdani is elected New York City mayor.
    Max Tani, semafor.com, 13 Oct. 2025
  • Apparently, many workers crash out and quit on the third Wednesday at the job.
    Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 13 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Get skillets, Dutch ovens, cake pans, and more before the sale ends.
    Caley Sturgill, Southern Living, 9 Oct. 2025
  • All federal employees who are not paid during the shutdown, whether they were furloughed or remained working, are entitled by law to back pay once the shutdown ends.
    Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 8 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Auston Matthews is one of the few with a four-year contract (which expires in 2028).
    Shayna Goldman, New York Times, 9 Oct. 2025
  • Trump noncommittal about Obamacare subsidies Trump would not commit on Wednesday to supporting an extension of subsidies in the Affordable Care Act that are set to expire at the end of the year.
    Joey Garrison, USA Today, 9 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Its intervention came days before a United Nations commission of inquiry concluded that Israel had committed genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.
    Jake Kanter, Deadline, 10 Oct. 2025
  • Pettit’s latest space mission, a 220-day jaunt, concluded on his 70th birthday on April 20, when the Russian Soyuz spacecraft that carried him and his two crewmates touched down in the steppe of Kazakhstan.
    Elizabeth Howell, Space.com, 10 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Discontinue.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/discontinue. Accessed 14 Oct. 2025.

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