1
as in independent
not favoring or joined to either side in a quarrel, contest, or war
Sweden remained neutral during World War II, refusing to join either side in the conflict
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in boring
lacking in distinctive features or qualities
the hero is the novel's only fully fleshed person, all the others being rather neutral characters who are just there to advance the plot
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of neutral
The building will be the first zero-energy, carbon-neutral public science destination in the world, Sereno said.
—
Madeline King, Chicago Tribune, 15 Apr. 2026
Japan is supposed to be neutral, Garth says, stunned at Daisy’s discovery.
—Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 15 Apr. 2026
Oil the pan Use a neutral oil (such as vegetable, canola, or grapeseed oil) to prevent sticking and encourage browning.
—Li Goldstein, Bon Appetit Magazine, 14 Apr. 2026
The investment firm upgraded Biogen to overweight from neutral.
—Liz Napolitano, CNBC, 14 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for neutral
Madeline King, Chicago Tribune, 15 Apr. 2026
Japan is supposed to be neutral, Garth says, stunned at Daisy’s discovery.
—Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 15 Apr. 2026
Oil the pan Use a neutral oil (such as vegetable, canola, or grapeseed oil) to prevent sticking and encourage browning.
—Li Goldstein, Bon Appetit Magazine, 14 Apr. 2026
The investment firm upgraded Biogen to overweight from neutral.
—Liz Napolitano, CNBC, 14 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for neutral
Recent Examples of Synonyms for neutral
Adjective
-
No candidate has drawn even 20% of voters’ support in independent polling.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
12 Apr. 2026
-
But even a young woman struggling with the patriarchal conundrum of cool-girl syndrome (to be independent and accepted) might reveal more of a snappish turn of mind than Grace does.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
12 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Pickled onions add a bright acidity, and everything gets tossed in barbecue sauce for a sweet and savory salad that’s anything but boring.—
Melinda Salchert,
Southern Living,
16 Apr. 2026
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Pastas and Grains Similar to powdered laundry detergent, pastas and grains have packaging that's dull, boring, and bulky.—
Ashlyn Needham,
The Spruce,
15 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Zhang Bo, co-founder of Didi and head of its autonomous driving business, disclosed the plans at a UAE-China business cooperation forum in Beijing earlier this week, according to the statement.—
Evelyn Cheng,
CNBC,
15 Apr. 2026
-
The book was completed months before Anthropic’s redlines generated new interest in autonomous-drone swarms and killer robots, but even then the writing was on the wall.—
Gideon Lewis-Kraus,
New Yorker,
15 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The bento box has a beige lid, which looks like wood.—
Julia Gomez,
USA Today,
15 Apr. 2026
-
Sprawled across the plaza was a beige carpet lined with black velvet ropes.—
Elise Taylor,
Vanity Fair,
15 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Credible, reliable and impartial evidence is the goal of legitimate science.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Apr. 2026
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Some impartial experts welcome the flexibility getting demonstrated during wartime.—
Eleanor Mueller,
semafor.com,
8 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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With the transfer portal about to open on Tuesday and Donovan still noncommittal, North Carolina decided not to wait and targeted and hired Malone — with Williams’ blessing — in the span of about 48 hours.—
Brendan Marks,
New York Times,
7 Apr. 2026
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Arthur Brooks, in particular, has made a career of elevating his noncommittal waffling into a warped kind of virtue.—
Becca Rothfeld,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Hilton and Bianco have emerged as the top two candidates in early polls for the state's nonpartisan primary, that's typcially dominated by Democrats.—
Terry Collins,
USA Today,
10 Apr. 2026
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Its failure to assess the troubling big picture drew a poor review from the nonpartisan Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB).—
Shawn Tully,
Fortune,
9 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The 39th floor penthouse of SoftBank’s downtown Tokyo headquarters is not your usual featureless C-suite.—
Charlie Campbell,
Time,
24 Feb. 2026
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Objects that were invisible to Hubble are easily revealed to JWST; objects that appear blurry to Hubble appear sharp with JWST views; objects that appeared featureless to Hubble have many clear features visible within them as seen by JWST.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
4 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Neutral.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/neutral. Accessed 19 Apr. 2026.
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