1
as in linguistic
of or relating to words or language the child didn't yet have the verbal skills needed to tell the doctor about the pain he was experiencing

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

2
as in oral
made or carried on through speaking rather than in writing a verbal agreement carries less force than a written contract

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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 verbal Lyra Valkyria, Nikki Bella, Bayley, and Dupri were all targets of her verbal jabs. Andrew Ravens‎, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2025 Now almost 12, Gideon is non-verbal. Wendy Grossman Kantor, PEOPLE, 30 Oct. 2025 The dispute between Bailey and Granberry began back in May when Bailey filed her restraining order request, accusing Granberry of physical, emotional, verbal, and financial abuse. Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 28 Oct. 2025 James finds the wit in every line of Perkins’ script, playing his characters straight and with emotional depth while still showing an unerring instinct for where to place his verbal emphasis for maximum laughs as well as horror. Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 24 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for verbal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for verbal
Adjective
  • Rethinking Charleston Receipts Like other books about Lowcountry life in that era, the pages are peppered with Gullah Geechee verses, the linguistic heritage of the West African descendants who live in the region, along with English interpretations.
    Adrian Miller, Southern Living, 28 Oct. 2025
  • While for many Americans speaking another language is seen as something extraordinary, true empowerment when traveling comes from embracing linguistic diversity, not expecting the entire world to speak English.
    Wilson Santiago Burgos, USA Today, 26 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • The documentary eschews traditional narrative structure in favor of Indigenous oral storytelling traditions, organizing its content into seven chapters with character archetypes rather than following a singular protagonist.
    Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 4 Nov. 2025
  • Metsera, founded in 2022, brings a pipeline of both oral and injectable treatments with different targets, including a drug targeting GLP-1 and another targeting another gut hormone called amylin.
    Annika Kim Constantino, CNBC, 4 Nov. 2025
Adjective
  • The uncertainty has been hard, even with suppliers being communicative and transparent.
    Roxana Popescu, San Diego Union-Tribune, 23 Oct. 2025
  • That started in huddles, with a demonstrably more communicative Jokic.
    Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 22 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • Bannon’s fantasy functions as a rhetorical weapon—a way of probing how far the cult of personality can go before the rule of law pushes back.
    Dan Perry, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2025
  • The rhetorical battle over blame and ending the federal government shutdown is getting hotter, at least for some in Arizona’s congressional delegation.
    Ronald J. Hansen, AZCentral.com, 22 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Verbal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/verbal. Accessed 5 Nov. 2025.

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