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 Prosecutors say Beirich, who previously led the SPLC's hate groups tracking section, was one among several individuals who oversaw payments to individuals who infiltrated white supremacist groups and acted as informants for SPLC. Alexander Mallin, ABC News, 12 Aug. 2026 With a $104 billion backlog and more than $25 billion of new commitments in the quarter – including work to expand Meta and Anthropic agreements – investors acted as though there was room for CoreWeave to expand capacity. Peter Cohan, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2026 In at least one remarkable case, this good book acted as life-saving armor. Literary Hub, 10 Aug. 2026 The Revolution created spaces of public freedom, and the Constitution gave durable form to power, which Arendt understood as something generated when people acted in concert. David Denby, New Yorker, 10 Aug. 2026 After the pair had finally acted on latent feelings for each other and decided to be together, Oona first broached the topic of Ramona leaving for New York and leaving her behind when Ramona pitched it as a not-yet final decision. Dessi Gomez, Deadline, 5 Aug. 2026 Security video of the early April 9 morning burglary shows three men entered the business through a broken window, smashed the machines with sledge hammers and pried out the boxes while a fourth man acted as lookout, the report said. Dennis Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 5 Aug. 2026 And perhaps their age difference didn’t register for some because Burke often acted like a kid himself. Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 5 Aug. 2026 MoSe2 acted as the top layer in this setup, hosting electrons, while the bottom WSe2 layer hosted electron holes. Ameya Paleja, Interesting Engineering, 5 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for acted
Verb
  • Tuesday morning’s workout brought a welcome diversion from drills, when SDSU players and coaches moved from the turf to the grass practice field and actually played some football.
    Kirk Kenney, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Aug. 2026
  • Etzel said the controversy surrounding COVID vaccines and vaccine mandates has played a role in fueling skepticism.
    Adisa Hargett-Robinson, The Washington Examiner, 12 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • City hold an interest in Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez with new head coach Enzo Maresca having worked with him at Stamford Bridge.
    David Ornstein, New York Times, 13 Aug. 2026
  • For the next year, Diaz and Megan Trussell's father, Joe Trussell, worked alongside state lawmakers to change how Colorado universities and trade schools respond when a student is reported missing.
    Sarah Horbacewicz, CBS News, 13 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • Clancy brought her daughter, Cora, to the pediatrician just hours before the killings, and nothing seemed amiss, the pediatrician testified.
    Andi Babineau, CNN Money, 8 Aug. 2026
  • Missouri’s last rider, Kade Madsen, had too much ground to make up but still seemed poised to put up a qualifying ride.
    Ava DiCecca, Sun Sentinel, 8 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • Roughly a decade ago, Stapleton served as Guns N’ Roses’ one-off opener at the band’s concert at Nashville’s Nissan Stadium concert in July 2016.
    Daniel Kreps, Rolling Stone, 7 Aug. 2026
  • The grilled Spam and cheese sliders ($16), with thin slices of Spam seared crisp served on Hawaiian buns with pineapple-jalapeno chutney, are a flavor bomb.
    Sean Timberlake, Sacbee.com, 7 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • As bait, the researchers created a fake startup, Ballena Azul, which pretended to focus on decentralized finance for large holders of cryptocurrency, which North Koreans have been known to target to fund the country’s regime.
    Michael Kan, PC Magazine, 11 Aug. 2026
  • The woman got up on their table and gleefully pretended to tap dance, drawing an amused crowd of onlookers.
    Alex Greenberger, ARTnews.com, 6 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • El-Sayed accused Stevens of representing a failing political establishment and mocked the outside spending supporting her campaign.
    Nik Popli, Time, 5 Aug. 2026
  • Since the education minister's resignation, Modi has also spoken of forgiving those who had mocked the prime minister, an apparent effort to reconnect with younger audiences.
    ABC News, ABC News, 4 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • In the past year since the outbreak of Israel’s siege of Lebanon, Wakim, Elassal, and Aukar have all performed shows in the country.
    Hershal Pandya, Vulture, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Following the hormone injections, an outpatient procedure is performed to retrieve the eggs from the ovaries.
    Isabel Danzis, ABC News, 9 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • Firestar operated a large factory inside Surat’s Special Economic Zone, a duty-free enclave that allowed the company to cut, polish and manufacture jewelry for export markets.
    Rhea Mogul, CNN Money, 9 Aug. 2026
  • Our navigation system, flood damage reduction projects, and water supply reservoirs are operated and maintained by people most Arkansans will never hear about.
    Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 9 Aug. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Acted.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/acted. Accessed 14 Aug. 2026.

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