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 World Cup acted as South Downtown’s debut, packing the area with traveling fans and locals taking their first look at downtown Atlanta’s next era. Zachary Hansen, AJC.com, 30 July 2026 Yet from July 3, 2025, until Clase, too, was placed on leave on July 28, the perennial All-Star acted as if nothing was brewing. Zack Meisel, New York Times, 28 July 2026 The young women acted as underground assassins, seducing Nazi officers, luring them into the woods and killing them. Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 28 July 2026 In each case, a single incident acted not as the sole cause of the unrest, but as the spark that brought existing grievances into the open. Šumit Ganguly, NPR, 27 July 2026 But then, during the Centennial year, Congress suddenly acted to fund and complete the tower. Matthew Wills, JSTOR Daily, 27 July 2026 Longstreet had acted in school and started going out on auditions, but nothing ever really took off for him. Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 27 July 2026 Resistant starch has acted similarly to prebiotics and improved gut health. Brittany Lubeck, Verywell Health, 22 July 2026 John Ross Bowie Fans of The Big Bang Theory will recognize John Ross Bowie as Barry Kripke, a fellow Caltech physicist who acted as Sheldon’s frequent rival. Katie Mannion, PEOPLE, 22 July 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for acted
Verb
  • The bridge — which connects Detroit and Windsor, Ontario — was named after legendary Canadian hockey player Gordie Howe who played for the Detroit Red Wings, symbolizing the longstanding relationship between the two countries.
    Bonny Chu, FOXNews.com, 22 July 2026
  • Wallack’s critique was echoed by former Beach Commissioner Saul Gross, a real estate investor who has played a significant role in Art Deco district preservation and whose Streamline Properties is on Washington.
    Andres Viglucci, Miami Herald, 22 July 2026
Verb
  • Tyler Guyton worked exclusively as the starting left tackle while Nate Thomas rotated in with the second-team group.
    Nick Harris, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 30 July 2026
  • Basiratmand worked in information technology for nearly 34 years and worked for a company that was a Microsoft partner.
    Michael Butler, Miami Herald, 30 July 2026
Verb
  • Suno allegedly did the same thing, according to a recent report from 404 Media covering a hack of Suno’s internal data, which seemed to indicate that Suno illegally scraped material from YouTube.
    Andrew Flanagan, Variety, 31 July 2026
  • Meanwhile, the president met with Netanyahu and Zelensky, the Democrats are making hay over the Iran war, and the Fauci hearing seemed to be a dud.
    Rob Crilly, The Washington Examiner, 31 July 2026
Verb
  • Strantz, according to his LinkedIn account, is a sports business attorney who has served as the Rockets’ senior team counsel since July 2024.
    Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 1 Aug. 2026
  • Arriola served as acting sheriff when King was initially charged and placed himself on administrative leave last August.
    Lillie Davidson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 31 July 2026
Verb
  • At first, Universal set up that experience with a clever narrative shift that pretended to put guests into a Universal movie after spending the tour learning how they were made.
    Robert Niles, Oc Register, 21 July 2026
  • Barcenas' tea-sipping celebration was a tribute to Alex Morgan, one of the Wave's owners, who pretended to take a sip of tea after scoring in a match against England during the 2019 Women's World Cup.
    ABC News, ABC News, 4 July 2026
Verb
  • Golf's media establishment mocked defectors as sellouts and eagerly counted down the days until LIV's collapse.
    Alejandro Avila OutKick, FOXNews.com, 30 July 2026
  • In the early 1930s, the Pulitzer Prize–winning New York Times correspondent Walter Duranty wrote stories denying the famine that Joseph Stalin’s forced-collectivization policies were causing in Ukraine and mocked journalists who reported the truth.
    James Kirchick, The Atlantic, 29 July 2026
Verb
  • Last year, The All-American Rejects performed at the Fandom Party, SPYAIR and Denzel Curry headlined the Crunchyroll Anime FanFest, and GI Joe’s Cold Slither debuted.
    Laura Sirikul, Forbes.com, 27 July 2026
  • That so many teams were capable of winning races showed how well the crews performed, especially considering the breeze was again blowing strongly across the Solent, around 17 knots and sometimes gusting over 20.
    Andrew Rice, New York Times, 26 July 2026
Verb
  • With a boat launch, any size motors are invited, but must be operated at a slow no-wake speed, according to the park website.
    Zuri Primos July 26, Kansas City Star, 26 July 2026
  • Scourton’s injury, which took place after rain hit the field, will likely lead to a look into the way the Panthers operated prior to Scourton being carted off the field.
    Mike Kaye July 26, Charlotte Observer, 26 July 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Acted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/acted. Accessed 2 Aug. 2026.

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