acted

past tense of act
1
2
as in worked
to produce a desired effect the painkiller acted surprisingly quickly

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

3
4
as in served
to have a certain purpose the tail feathers of woodpeckers act as props while the birds excavate tree trunks for insects

Synonyms & Similar Words

5
6
as in mocked
to pretend to be (what one is not) in appearance or behavior someone who is willing to act the helpless little thing when she wants attention

Synonyms & Similar 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 acted The intruder might have been deterred by the couple’s two dogs — except that neither canine acted like a traditional guard dog. Grace Toohey, Los Angeles Times, 16 Sep. 2026 On the greatest night of his greatest coaching feat, Sarkisian acted without grace or a shred of tact. Candace Buckner, New York Times, 16 Sep. 2026 Lazard and Lydian Strategy acted as financial advisors to Macro. Angelique Jackson, Variety, 16 Sep. 2026 In another simulation, a Gemini agent, while initially flagging the phishing lure, acted on it about 46 hours later. Jake Angelo, semafor.com, 15 Sep. 2026 Investigators said Joseph acted as the getaway driver in the robberies. Rosalio Ahumada, Sacbee.com, 15 Sep. 2026 The inquiry into baby deaths found the Countess of Chester Hospital, in northwestern England, could have saved some infants from death and injury if staff had acted sooner when children began collapsing, Justice Kathryn Thirlwall said. CBS News, 15 Sep. 2026 In a November 2025 interview with Fox News Digital, Patel and Bongino said investigators concluded that Crooks acted alone, and found no evidence that he was directed by or linked to a foreign individual, government, or organization. Fernando Cervantes Jr, USA Today, 15 Sep. 2026 Coal, which still supplies about 53% of China's energy mix by Wang's estimate, acted as a crucial shock absorber, allowing the economy to substitute away from oil when prices spiked. Anniek Bao, CNBC, 10 Sep. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for acted
Verb
  • Richard Heathcote/Getty Images The 25-year-old was often rotated and played only 2,623 minutes across Ligue 1 and the Champions League but still managed 18 goals and 10 assists.
    Anantaajith Raghuraman, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2026
  • Sabalenka held and then played one of her best games of the match, breaking at love to tie it at 4-all.
    Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 9 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Eric worked for a time as a software developer in a few start-ups, and Owen as an analyst at a venture-capital firm.
    Eric Zwick, The Atlantic, 14 Sep. 2026
  • What worked was giving people something real to discuss and share, rather than asking them to absorb another leadership message.
    Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 14 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • This guy seemed all right, so why not meet up with him just to try it out?
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 17 Sep. 2026
  • The show’s composer, Stephen Schwartz, and director, Howard Sponseller, seemed utterly taken with this tall, skinny girl, whose name was Gilda Radner.
    Victor Garber, Vulture, 17 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • The court had unsealed an arrest warrant for Ronald Marapon dela Rosa, who served as national police chief under Duterte.
    ABC News, ABC News, 16 Sep. 2026
  • After Abrahamson was accused in 2003 of stealing tens of thousands of dollars from an ex-girlfriend and her friends in a fake investment scheme, he was found guilty of violating his probation and served about seven years in state prison.
    Kevin Fixler September 16, Idaho Statesman, 16 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Police later determined that Bianchi and Buono often pretended to be off-duty police officers to lure their victims.
    Caroline Blair, PEOPLE, 4 Sep. 2026
  • The wild videos of Daejon Love, the 35-year-old man who pretended to be a 49ers receiver.
    Jacob Robinson, New York Times, 3 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • In fact, after the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center, which killed six and injured more than a thousand people but hardly rocked the buildings, ironworkers mocked the idea that any terrorist could ever take down those great structures.
    Jeff Goodell, Rolling Stone, 11 Sep. 2026
  • He was criticised by Guardiola last season for not challenging Virgil van Dijk anywhere near enough at Anfield in February, and he was mocked by supporters at Old Trafford in January after he was kept quiet by Lisandro Martinez and Harry Maguire.
    Sam Lee, New York Times, 10 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Hundreds crowded around the Adidas store as the KU pep band and cheerleaders performed for about a half hour.
    Taylor Eldridge, Kansas City Star, 18 Sep. 2026
  • Emergency crews performed life-saving measures before Blue was pronounced dead at the scene.
    Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 18 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • Since 2018, Hialeah’s libraries operated as their own independent city department, answering directly to the mayor and council rather than sitting under a larger agency.
    Verónica Egui Brito, Miami Herald, 18 Sep. 2026
  • An onboard safety pilot remained present throughout the flight but never operated the aircraft’s controls.
    Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 18 Sep. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Acted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/acted. Accessed 19 Sep. 2026.

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