make waves

phrase

: to create a stir or disturbance

… continues to make waves with his unique, highly opinionated approach.

—Suzanne Biallot

Examples of make waves in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Dolly Parton may be gone, but her spirit of self-expression is still making waves — this time in a Texas federal court. — Hannah Fry, Los Angeles Times, 26 Aug. 2026

No new phenomenon While Goldin’s methodology can be debated (and indeed, the historian is open to feedback), the research is nevertheless making waves. — Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 23 Aug. 2026

Tesila has been making waves at the World Beer Awards for a while now—its Eisbock took Gold in 2025, and its Hefeweiss and Low Alcohol Sour also grabbed medals that year. — Hudson Lindenberger, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026

As an indie stalwart in the publicity and marketing space, Cinetic Marketing has long enjoyed making an outsized impact on the movies that make waves out of festivals and during awards season. — Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 20 Aug. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1962, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for make waves

• airwaves
• behaves
• enclaves
• architraves
• autoclaves
• microwaves
• braves
• caves
• craves
• knaves
• laves
• naves