Synonym Chooser

How is the word athirst distinct from other similar adjectives?

Some common synonyms of athirst are anxious, avid, eager, and keen. While all these words mean "moved by a strong and urgent desire or interest," athirst stresses yearning but not necessarily readiness for action.

athirst for adventure

When might anxious be a better fit than athirst?

The synonyms anxious and athirst are sometimes interchangeable, but anxious emphasizes fear of frustration or failure or disappointment.

anxious not to make a social blunder

How do avid and eager relate to one another, in the sense of athirst?

Avid adds to eager the implication of insatiability or greed.

avid for new thrills

In what contexts can eager take the place of athirst?

The meanings of eager and athirst largely overlap; however, eager implies ardor and enthusiasm and sometimes impatience at delay or restraint.

eager to get started

When would keen be a good substitute for athirst?

In some situations, the words keen and athirst are roughly equivalent. However, keen suggests intensity of interest and quick responsiveness in action.

keen on the latest fashions

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for athirst
Adjective
  • While fans are excited for their own team's schedule, every NFL game, especially prime-time ones, is a must-see.
    Ricardo Klein, MSNBC Newsweek, 15 May 2025
  • The nerves turned into excited butterflies as my wave kicked off.
    Stacey Leasca, Travel + Leisure, 15 May 2025
Adjective
  • The smoke travels up almost 100 feet of steel and copper tubes to the chimney and the world beyond. 21h ago / 1:45 AM PDT Share Panini, water and a telescopic folding stool: how to survive the conclave Alexander Smith Reporting from Vatican City For the avid smokewatcher, preparation is key.
    Katie Primm, NBC news, 9 May 2025
  • Residents who live near a fishing location, spend a lot of time near the water or are avid boaters are encouraged to get involved.
    Joe Rassel, The Orlando Sentinel, 7 May 2025
Adjective
  • With deep pockets and thousands of eager worshippers hanging on their every word each Sunday, what does their church garb look like?
    Scottie Andrew, CNN Money, 3 May 2025
  • But unlike in the cases of Depp or Simpson, eager trial watchers will have to rely on courtroom sketches and reporter dispatches from inside, as cameras have been shut out of the proceedings.
    Anna Kaufman, USA Today, 3 May 2025
Adjective
  • In 2019, Joker received an enthusiastic eight-minute reception in Venice.
    Nancy Tartaglione, Deadline, 13 May 2025
  • And of course, the ship’s enthusiastic and highly experienced dive masters are always there make sure the diving is safe and fun.
    Bill Springer, Forbes.com, 9 May 2025
Adjective
  • Remember the body blow of injustice, and don’t get mad — get hungry.
    Pat Beall, Sun Sentinel, 9 May 2025
  • The result is a record which captures Motörhead in their formative period, fresh from the early lineup which recorded the tracks that would later make up 1979’s On Parole album, yet hungry with the ambition that would turn them into one of the U.K.’s biggest heavy exports of the ’70s and ’80s.
    Tyler Jenke, Billboard, 9 May 2025
Adjective
  • This productivity decline stems from several factors: Workplace morale deteriorates Remaining employees absorb additional responsibilities Teams become anxious about future job security When employees question whether their leaders truly value them, their enthusiasm and dedication suffer.
    Caroline Castrillon, Forbes.com, 11 May 2025
  • Nobel laureates, such as MIT’s Daron Acemoglu, are worried about its capacity to worsen income inequalities, and ordinary American workers are anxious about AI’s impact on jobs.
    Bhaskar Chakravorti, Harvard Business Review, 8 May 2025
Adjective
  • During the growing season, more than half of our residential water is used for our landscapes, particularly the ubiquitous and thirsty Kentucky bluegrass (which, despite the name, comes from Europe).
    Special to The Denver Post, Denver Post, 9 May 2025
  • Their offense is thirsty, their defense disheveled.
    Marcus Thompson II, New York Times, 3 May 2025
Adjective
  • Among Mao’s most ardent admirers, there’s a sense of pride that the US president appears to be borrowing from the revolutionary playbook of their esteemed supreme leader.
    Nectar Gan, CNN Money, 12 May 2025
  • Prime Minister Modi in India has been a very ardent Hindu nationalist.
    Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 10 May 2025
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.

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Cite this Entry

“Athirst.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/athirst. Accessed 19 May. 2025.

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