ACTUATES Synonyms: 90 Similar and Opposite Words

actuates

verb

present tense third-person singular of actuate

as in activates

to cause to function a light actuated by a motion detector the alarm system actuates the door locks

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in drives

to set or keep in motion hearing depends on sound vibrations that actuate the complex mechanism of that sensory organ, the ear

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for actuates

Verb

The accumulating damage persistently activates the innate immune system—the body’s first line of defense—leading to what is known as inflammaging, functional decline and chronic diseases of old age.

— Kristel Tjandra, Hartford Courant, 30 Oct. 2026
For controls, the left earcup has a power button, while the right earcup has a noise-control button that activates your voice assistant when held down.

— Christian de Looper, PC Magazine, 29 Oct. 2026

Definition of activates

Verb

Gen Alpha already drives nearly half of household spending and more than $100 billion in direct annual purchases.

— Hanna Wickes, Charlotte Observer, 6 Nov. 2026
Rather than deliver a traditional acceptance speech, the actress settled in for an onstage conversation with Fonda that offered a glimpse into what drives her philanthropy and activism.

— Paul Chi, Vogue, 6 Nov. 2026

Definition of drives

Verb

That is a classic non-public forum that triggers First Amendment protection.

— Ted Johnson, Deadline, 30 Oct. 2026
Each team checks its own systems, validates availability, assesses cost impact, secures approvals and manually triggers updates across downstream systems.

— Jayashree Arunkumar, Forbes.com, 30 Oct. 2026

Definition of triggers

Verb

As part of its process, the powered gimbal moves the image around in the general direction the projector's already facing, stopping the movement several times in the process before continuing, and adjusting the image size several times as well.

— M. David Stone, PC Magazine, 24 Oct. 2026
Flight testing moves forward L3Harris has reached the second phase of the Army’s Xtended Range Counter-sUAS Missile program.

— Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 24 Oct. 2026

Definition of moves

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.

Browse Nearby Words

actuated

actuates

actuating

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Actuates.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/actuates. Accessed 7 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of actuates

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

abandon

Popular in Grammar & Usage

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Popular in Wordplay

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Old-Timey Vehicles

The Words of the Week - Nov. 6

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Popular

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Games & Quizzes