arms 1 of 3

noun (1)

plural of arm
as in guns
a portable weapon from which a shot is discharged by gunpowder soldiers grabbing their arms and helmets and heading into battle

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arms

2 of 3

noun (2)

plural of arm
1
as in departments
a large unit of a governmental, business, or educational organization a company that needs to beef up its marketing arm if it wants to compete in today's business world

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2
as in bays
a part of a body of water that extends beyond the general shoreline this arm of the Atlantic is surprisingly peaceful, as the stronger ocean currents do not reach this far

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3
as in capes
an area of land that juts out into a body of water Maine has so many long, narrow arms that jut out into the ocean that early coastal settlers found it much easier to travel by sea

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4
as in powers
the right or means to command or control others few criminals manage to permanently escape the long arm of the law

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

arms

3 of 3

verb

present tense third-person singular of arm
as in fortifies

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Dissimilar 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 arms
Noun
The 21-year-old influencer wrapped her arms around her athlete beau and appeared to plant a kiss on him while celebrating Spain’s win at New York New Jersey Stadium. — Bailey Richards, PEOPLE, 20 July 2026 Police said the victims sustained gunshot wounds primarily to their extremities, including their arms and legs. — Bonny Chu, FOXNews.com, 20 July 2026 In the bell, Holzinger’s previously compact torso becomes long and androgynous, her arms and lats titanic. — Lauren Oyler, New Yorker, 20 July 2026 Started by Palantir, Forward Deployed Engineers are a growing trend, with companies like OpenAI, Anthropic and Amazon investing billions of dollars into their respective FDE arms. — Nisha Talagala, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026 That has made the Cubs much more willing to move arms who might have seemed unlikely to go just a few weeks ago. — Sahadev Sharma, New York Times, 20 July 2026 Focus on the abdomen first, then gynecomastia reduction and sometimes a body lift at the same time, and finally the extremities like arms and thighs. — The Editors, Robb Report, 19 July 2026 According to BrainCo, the platform works with a range of third-party hardware, including humanoid robots, robotic arms and robotic dogs. — Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 19 July 2026 The White man, his sinewy, tattooed arms already beet-red from the sun, shouldered the cross from the center beam. — John Blake, CNN Money, 19 July 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for arms
  1. guns
  2. departments
  3. bays
  4. capes
  5. powers
  6. fortifies
  7. firearms
  8. agencies
Noun
  • When Marshall showed up, Reyes and Chamberlain both fired guns at Marshall as Marshall tried to get away, according to the affidavit.
    — Emerson Clarridge, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 22 July 2026
  • However, drones can also be vulnerable to guns, electronic warfare, and short-range air-defense systems.
    — Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 21 July 2026
Definition of guns
Noun
  • As trial evidence accumulates, expect state health departments, Medicare wellness materials and Alzheimer’s advocacy groups to point more explicitly toward berries, tea and apples.
    — Samantha Agate, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 22 July 2026
  • Medicare continues to pay significantly more for identical outpatient services in hospital outpatient departments (HOPDs) than in independent physician offices or ambulatory surgery centers.
    — Richard Menger MD MPA, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026
Definition of departments
Noun
  • The Hotel Due Mari, a 17th-century aristocratic villa formerly owned by the marquesses of Bolasco, sits between Sestri’s two bays.
    — Catherine Sabino, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026
  • Flexible payload options Instead of dedicating Thunder to a single role, Anduril built the aircraft around interchangeable payload bays.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 20 July 2026
Definition of bays
Noun
  • Families, friends and members of the community cheered for about 50 children during the parade, some decked out in Viking helmets and capes, while others sported the blue and yellow colors of the Swedish flag with floral crowns in their hair.
    — Linda Girardi, Chicago Tribune, 29 June 2026
  • Revellers in Knicks capes pleaded their cases fruitlessly.
    — Dan Greene, New Yorker, 20 June 2026
Definition of capes
Noun
  • These muni bonds need to be bought, so the powers-that-be will make phone calls to their contacts in Bondland to buy up these 6% coupons.
    — Brett Owens, Forbes.com, 23 July 2026
  • In recent years, the exercise has grown to include scenarios that focus on competition with other major military powers.
    — Sujita Sinha, Interesting Engineering, 23 July 2026
Definition of powers
Verb
  • Inside, soy proteins repair and strengthen, copper peptides stimulate keratin production–aka the protein that fortifies and minimizes frizz–and pro-B vitamins amplify fullness.
    — Ellie Davis, Vogue, 25 June 2026
  • The Olive and June product can also be applied daily to bare nails as an intensive strengthening treatment that not only fortifies your claws, but also repairs ridges, discoloration, and pesky peeling along the way.
    — Kyra Surgent, InStyle, 3 June 2026
Definition of fortifies
Noun
  • California has some of the nation’s toughest gun laws, but state lawmakers are concerned that a new technology is allowing criminals to obtain firearms by building them from scratch.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 19 July 2026
  • On Saturday, Judge D’Anthony Thedford allowed for Davis’ pretrial release, but ordered him to surrender his firearm owner’s identification card and firearms to law enforcement within 48 hours.
    — William Lee, Chicago Tribune, 18 July 2026
Definition of firearms
Noun
  • The entire industry has struggled to converge in the way credit-rating agencies generally do.
    — Shivaram Rajgopal, Forbes.com, 23 July 2026
  • Bigger picture But ultimately, many of these debris concerns could be mitigated with more responsible behaviors from space agencies and launch providers, Sorge said.
    — Leonard David, Space.com, 22 July 2026
Definition of agencies

Phrases Containing arms

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armpits
arms
arm-twist
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Cite this Entry

“Arms.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/arms. Accessed 25 Jul. 2026.

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