ROIL Synonyms: 73 Similar and Opposite Words

roil

verb

ˈrȯi(-ə)l

Definition of roil

as in to swirl

to be in a state of violent rolling motion the waters of the gulf tossed and roiled as the hurricane surged toward the shore

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to anger

to make angry the clerk's brusque refusal of her request roiled her enough to prompt a complaint to his supervisor

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 roil Cabarrus County is facing another shake-up in its top leadership, with Commissioner Larry Pittman’s resignation adding to nearly two years of turnover that has roiled the county’s governing board and administrative staff. — Nora O'Neill, Charlotte Observer, 22 Sep. 2026 Over his shoulder was an enormous portrait of the hatchet-wielding temperance crusader Carrie Nation, an icon of resistance to the excesses of the first Gilded Age, when similar discontent had roiled the prairies. — Kyle Paoletta, Harpers Magazine, 22 Sep. 2026 The Nassar case roiled the MSU community and its fallout led to the resignations of then-MSU President Lou Anna Simon and Provost June Youatt. — Kristen Jordan Shamus, Freep.com, 20 Sep. 2026 Gasoline drove more than one-third of that monthly increase, as the Iran war continues to roil global oil markets. — Jake Angelo, semafor.com, 11 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for roil

Recent Examples of Synonyms for roil

Verb

Now, questions are swirling around the agreement, including who will pay for the benefits and when residents would receive them.

— Desiree Mathurin, Charlotte Observer, 1 Oct. 2026
Burnham’s comments come as questions about the incident – which triggered a major security response in the area and sparked international alarm – continue to swirl on both sides of the Atlantic.

— Kara Fox, CNN Money, 30 Sep. 2026

Definition of swirl

Verb

Other factors sending Treasury yields higher are also continuing to churn, including worries about the big debt loads that Washington and other governments worldwide are supporting.

— Stan Choe, Los Angeles Times, 30 Sep. 2026
In the churning, deep waters of the Bay of All Saints, conventional construction equipment doesn’t stand a chance.

— Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 29 Sep. 2026

Definition of churn

Verb

Some administration officials argue that Washington is merely trying to avoid unnecessarily infuriating Beijing.

— David Sacks, Foreign Affairs, 28 Sep. 2026
Some descendants worry that the new research from Kurin and his colleagues will only infuriate die-hard Jefferson apologists further.

— Andrew Lawler, The Atlantic, 18 Sep. 2026

Definition of infuriate

Verb

The drama reignited a heated debate over the tech threatening to put human creatives in the industry out of a job, a nightmare scenario that has enraged some of the most influential minds in Hollywood.

— Victor Tangermann, Futurism, 10 Sep. 2026
Monken has decided to stick with Deshaun Watson as his QB1, a move that has confused and enraged some of the fanbase.

— Takashi Williams, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026

Definition of enrage

Verb

Tom Rhys Harries seethes as Matt Hagen, a pretty boy who loses his looks only to regain them from an experimental procedure that makes a jumble of his psyche.

— Randy Myers, Mercury News, 2 Sep. 2026
Villains dating hot blondes has the traditional golf journalists seething while SeanJo, myself and Nightcaps legend Zach Dean sit back and just smile.

— Joe Kinsey OutKick, FOXNews.com, 25 Aug. 2026

Definition of seethe

Browse Nearby Words

roguishness

roil

roiled

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Roil.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/roil. Accessed 3 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of roil

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

tittle

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Popular in Wordplay

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Oct. 2

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Popular

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

Games & Quizzes