1
as in passion
intense sexual desire
he was overcome with lust when he saw the images
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in desire
a strong wish for something
the belief that most politicians have a lust for power
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in thirst
urgent desire or interest
vacation tours for people with a lust for adventure
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in lustfulness
sexual appetite
a no-strings-attached relationship in which both parties were there merely for the satisfaction of their lust
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to mate
Related Words
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 lust
The New Yorker, New Yorker, 13 June 2025
Sailors and landlubbers can lust after the latest jackets and other gear for foul or fair weather — and conduct a battle of the brands — by bouncing between Helly Hansen and Musto, only three doors apart.
—Charles Babington, New York Times, 21 May 2025
Troy McMullen, ABC News, 8 June 2025
Spanning every emotion between anger and lust, this collection makes for a fiery must-read.
—Wanjeri Gakuru
july 11, Literary Hub, 11 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for lust
Noun
But Israel’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has lusted to destroy Tehran’s nuclear capabilities—for either peaceful energy or a bomb—for more than a decade.
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 13 June 2025
Sailors and landlubbers can lust after the latest jackets and other gear for foul or fair weather — and conduct a battle of the brands — by bouncing between Helly Hansen and Musto, only three doors apart.
—Charles Babington, New York Times, 21 May 2025
Verb
Accounts of Jewish congregational life in Berlin are mixed with detailed descriptions of the awkwardness and lust that go along with living inside a female teenage body.
—Troy McMullen, ABC News, 8 June 2025
Spanning every emotion between anger and lust, this collection makes for a fiery must-read.
—Wanjeri Gakuru
july 11, Literary Hub, 11 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for lust
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lust
Noun
-
Captain Joe touched the lives of many with his kindness, passion, and love for the water.—
David Goodhue
August 18,
Miami Herald,
19 Aug. 2025
-
Jones was keen to capitalize on the boundless passion Americans had at the college level, and introducing pep rallies was a big way to entrench fans into the world of the Cowboys.—
Barry Levitt,
Time,
19 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Negotiations continue, with both sides expressing a desire to reach a deal before Ascension Wisconsin providers fall out-of-network on Oct. 1.—
Sarah Volpenhein,
jsonline.com,
18 Aug. 2025
-
One episode involved Bondi’s desire to sit in the President’s box at the FIFA Club World Cup finals, in July, at the height of the Epstein uproar.—
Ruth Marcus,
New Yorker,
18 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Life on these worlds would have to lurk underground for reasons other than thirst alone because their surface is scarcely shielded by an atmosphere and constantly bombarded with lethal cosmic rays.—
Emma R. Hasson,
Scientific American,
17 Aug. 2025
-
Suddenly, a new order takes hold in Pavilion, whose fed-up residents grow increasingly divided between their desire to be treated with dignity and their thirst for revenge.—
Christopher Vourlias,
Variety,
14 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Cats mate with siblings, but in 2021 my ex and I got Lali spayed to prevent reproduction.—
Tao Lin,
Harpers Magazine,
20 Aug. 2025
-
There, the adults mate, and the mass erupts like an infernal, infectious volcano, spewing out eggs.—
Beth Mole,
ArsTechnica,
13 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Jack in the Box restaurants are also open later than many fast-food competitors to sate those after-hours cravings.—
Robert Channick,
Chicago Tribune,
15 Aug. 2025
-
Cutting any one too drastically can lead to fatigue, nutrient deficiencies, and intense cravings.—
Lauryn Higgins,
Time,
13 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
Institutional enthusiasm for digital assets is rising, and the U.S. regulatory climate has grown friendlier, even as the economics of mining face more pressure from bitcoin’s quadrennial halving.—
Becca Bratcher,
Forbes.com,
16 Aug. 2025
-
Time will tell whether ASI’s enthusiasm was ultimately strategic or premature.—
Ruxandra Iordache,
CNBC,
15 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
These guppies also attempted to sneakily copulate with the females more often.—
Laura Baisas,
Popular Science,
10 July 2025
-
Male bees are fooled by these lookalikes and will attempt to copulate with them and, in doing so, will spread the pollen of the orchid.—
The San Diego Union Tribune,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
14 June 2025
Noun
-
Groups of bathers, wrestlers, and ironworkers radiate eroticism, but the couples resort to shibboleths, such as the middle finger extended, during a shoulder touch, in Jacques-Émile Blanche’s portrait of himself and his lover.—
Julian Lucas,
New Yorker,
15 July 2025
-
There’s not much room for nuance here — the political horse-trading involved in creating this opportunity is particularly unconvincing — and the film’s leering eroticism undercuts the seriousness of its case for women as equals on the battlefield.—
Scott Tobias,
Vulture,
20 Nov. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Lust.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lust. Accessed 29 Aug. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share