1
as in bay
a part of a body of water that extends beyond the general shoreline
we dipped our feet in the warm waters of the gulf
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2
as in abyss
an immeasurable depth or space
the gulf of understanding between the two men was too wide for them to ever get along
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3
as in canyon
a narrow opening between hillsides or mountains that can be used for passage
the gulf was too wide to cross, so we had to hike down into it and go through it
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4
as in gap
an open space in a barrier (as a wall or hedge)
a wide gulf in the defensive wall meant the city was in grave danger
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in to flood
to cover with a flood
with the administration gulfed by so many real problems, it's absurd for the president to concern himself with this nonissue
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of gulf
Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 24 Apr. 2026
Wrexham spent big in an attempt to bridge that gulf — an unprecedented £33million ($45m) was invested last summer — and the value of that recruitment could be seen against Oxford, with eight of those new faces on the pitch at the final whistle.
—Richard Sutcliffe, New York Times, 22 Apr. 2026
Ferris Jabr, Smithsonian, 8 Jan. 2018
Read More: Gulf Spat Escalates as Saudi Arabia, U.A.E. Media Attack Qatar
Institutional and individual investors from the GCC sold 34.6 million riyals ($9.5 million) of Qatari stocks on Monday, the most in a single trading session since March 21.
—Glen Carey, Bloomberg.com, 30 May 2017
See All Example Sentences for gulf
Noun
Watching Irina Morozova use her own tooth to have a few illuminating chats with her fellow inmates via Morse code, I was powerfully reminded of the gulf between her, a woman made of adamantium, and me, a soft little house cat in human form.
—Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 24 Apr. 2026
Wrexham spent big in an attempt to bridge that gulf — an unprecedented £33million ($45m) was invested last summer — and the value of that recruitment could be seen against Oxford, with eight of those new faces on the pitch at the final whistle.
—Richard Sutcliffe, New York Times, 22 Apr. 2026
Verb
So many gulfs separate us now: geographical, anatomical, psychological.
—Ferris Jabr, Smithsonian, 8 Jan. 2018
Read More: Gulf Spat Escalates as Saudi Arabia, U.A.E. Media Attack Qatar
Institutional and individual investors from the GCC sold 34.6 million riyals ($9.5 million) of Qatari stocks on Monday, the most in a single trading session since March 21.
—Glen Carey, Bloomberg.com, 30 May 2017
See All Example Sentences for gulf
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gulf
Noun
-
The venue was a casually magnificent stone building, constructed in the fifteenth century as a Dominican convent, on a promontory overlooking a sparkling bay.—
Andrew Marantz,
New Yorker,
9 May 2026
-
By last year, this had risen to 80,000, with a further 36,000 seeing it for themselves from ships docked in Antarctica’s spectacular bays.—
Chas Newkey-Burden,
TheWeek,
8 May 2026
Noun
-
Banks’ lack of effort during the 2024 season, in fact, was one of the factors that drove Dexter Lawrence to his breaking point of frustration in trying to lead a team without a winning culture of accountability out of the abyss.—
Pat Leonard,
New York Daily News,
4 May 2026
-
The white whale may drag him into the abyss, and Melville may have gone to his grave in semi-obscurity, but neither will stay dead.—
Sara Holdren,
Vulture,
1 May 2026
Noun
-
Few journeys bring you as close to this breathtaking landscape as the Rocky Mountaineer, a train that threads through canyons, forests, and mountain passes.—
Taryn White,
Travel + Leisure,
27 Apr. 2026
-
The mile-deep canyon is 278 river miles long, and 18 miles across at its widest point.—
Catherine Garcia,
TheWeek,
27 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The new batch of money is separate from a $245 million pool of new funds officials already allocated to help close looming budget gaps.—
Talia Soglin,
Chicago Tribune,
28 Apr. 2026
-
The Canadian reverse logistics company’s pathway-level data report details the limitations, trade-offs and infrastructure gaps that defining the sector—something Debrand likened to opening the black box of textile circularity.—
Alexandra Harrell,
Footwear News,
28 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Interestingly, supercomputer simulations revealed that a dolphin’s propulsion is driven by the formation of massive, powerful vortex rings.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
4 May 2026
-
The combination creates a vortex effect, which pulls hot ash, embers and debris into a spinning column.—
Blanca Begert,
Los Angeles Times,
3 May 2026
Verb
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During the pandemic, the Fed launched massive bond-buying programs, cut rates to zero, and promised to keep them there, flooding the economy with cash and stoking inflation.—
Eva Roytburg,
Fortune,
3 May 2026
-
If occupancy was falling, there could be concern for flooding the market with too many rentals.—
Kenneth R. Gosselin,
Hartford Courant,
3 May 2026
Noun
-
The steep, narrow road curves to offer views of the Pacific Ocean and Klamath River estuary.—
Patricia Doherty,
Travel + Leisure,
3 May 2026
-
Just an hour outside of Charleston, South Carolina, and nestled along the Atlantic Coast, Kiawah Island sports all the telltale signs of the Lowcountry—Spanish moss swaying from live oak branches, heavy humidity hanging in the air, and winding estuaries abounding at every corner.—
Katherine Polcari,
Southern Living,
2 May 2026
Noun
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But when a mysterious aircraft sinks into the ocean, Ally’s peaceful world is suddenly thrown into danger and is thrust into a journey real-life marine creatures as the film explores themes of friendship and courage.—
Etan Vlessing,
HollywoodReporter,
28 Apr. 2026
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The Orion capsule will be returned to NASA's Kennedy Space Center for additional study following the mission — but before it was plucked from the ocean, the divers managed to capture images of the capsule and its heat shield underwater.—
Chelsea Gohd,
Space.com,
28 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Gulf.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gulf. Accessed 9 May. 2026.
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