as in vengeful
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
as in revenging
to punish in kind the wrongdoer responsible for
a play about a prince who struggles to avenge his father's death
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 avenging
David Sims, The Atlantic, 31 May 2018
Iron Man and his avenging friends are onto Phase 3 now.)
—David Greenwald, OregonLive.com, 13 June 2017
Chris Biderman, Sacbee.com, 1 Jan. 2026
During the installment set in Thailand, Gries reprised his role as Greg Hunt, a former lover of Tanya McQuoid (Jennifer Coolidge), while Goggins joined the show as Rick Hatchett, a grifter who was set on avenging his father's death.
—Stacy Lambe, PEOPLE, 31 Dec. 2025
Day is looking forward to avenging last year's loss.
—Matt Audilet, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 Nov. 2025
Grainier works with too many men to count, and watches as many get felled by falling logs, shot by avenging gunmen, or, in the case of one Chinese laborer, tossed into a ravine by a racist posse.
—Rory Doherty, Time, 21 Nov. 2025
The Eagles’ task of the week involves avenging their loss to the Giants in Week 6.
—Mike Jones, New York Times, 26 Oct. 2025
The movie tells the story of a teenager avenging the deaths of his family at the hands of hordes of carnivorous demons and, against all the odds, it has been embraced by critics and audiences alike.
—Caroline Reid, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025
Ruisz and Durkin hooked up again on a 51-yard TD pass midway through the second quarter as the Eagles built a 28-0 halftime lead on the way to avenging last season’s 42-27 loss to the Thunderbolts and giving Murphy a win in his debut as Sandburg’s head coach.
—Steve Millar, Chicago Tribune, 30 Aug. 2025
This was Alcaraz’s sixth ATP title this year and 22nd overall, going some way to avenging his loss to Sinner in the Wimbledon final last month.
—George Ramsay, CNN Money, 19 Aug. 2025
Adjective
Toss in his portly stature and Hoskins was a perfect choice for the heroic plumber Mario, the avenging angel who stomps through worlds of evil turtles and living mushrooms, even if the actor was neither Italian nor American.
—David Sims, The Atlantic, 31 May 2018
Iron Man and his avenging friends are onto Phase 3 now.)
—David Greenwald, OregonLive.com, 13 June 2017
Verb
Klay Thompson scored 16 of his 23 points in the frame, avenging his scoreless performance in the play-in opener a year earlier with the Golden State Warriors, and Anthony Davis scored a game-high 27 points.
—Chris Biderman, Sacbee.com, 1 Jan. 2026
During the installment set in Thailand, Gries reprised his role as Greg Hunt, a former lover of Tanya McQuoid (Jennifer Coolidge), while Goggins joined the show as Rick Hatchett, a grifter who was set on avenging his father's death.
—Stacy Lambe, PEOPLE, 31 Dec. 2025
Day is looking forward to avenging last year's loss.
—Matt Audilet, MSNBC Newsweek, 26 Nov. 2025
Grainier works with too many men to count, and watches as many get felled by falling logs, shot by avenging gunmen, or, in the case of one Chinese laborer, tossed into a ravine by a racist posse.
—Rory Doherty, Time, 21 Nov. 2025
The Eagles’ task of the week involves avenging their loss to the Giants in Week 6.
—Mike Jones, New York Times, 26 Oct. 2025
The movie tells the story of a teenager avenging the deaths of his family at the hands of hordes of carnivorous demons and, against all the odds, it has been embraced by critics and audiences alike.
—Caroline Reid, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025
Ruisz and Durkin hooked up again on a 51-yard TD pass midway through the second quarter as the Eagles built a 28-0 halftime lead on the way to avenging last season’s 42-27 loss to the Thunderbolts and giving Murphy a win in his debut as Sandburg’s head coach.
—Steve Millar, Chicago Tribune, 30 Aug. 2025
This was Alcaraz’s sixth ATP title this year and 22nd overall, going some way to avenging his loss to Sinner in the Wimbledon final last month.
—George Ramsay, CNN Money, 19 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for avenging
Adjective
-
That vengeful justification yielded during the Enlightenment, during a broader societal conversion to an age of reason.—
Paul Rosenzweig,
The Atlantic,
3 Jan. 2026
-
For example, the whale-like Tulkun return, but bigger and more vengeful.—
Jazz Tangcay,
Variety,
17 Dec. 2025
Adjective
-
This comes after a judge threw out parts of Paris’s petition in November, granting a motion from the executors that invoked California’s anti-SLAPP statute, which is meant to prevent retaliatory legal action.—
Jennifer Zhan,
Vulture,
15 Jan. 2026
-
The pair succeeded by through the use of California's anti-SLAPP laws, which include protections against retaliatory legal action.—
Emlyn Travis,
Entertainment Weekly,
15 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
In retaliating against the Union, TSG decided to disastrously impact its employees, its guests, local businesses, and our community.—
Austen Erblat,
CBS News,
27 Dec. 2025
-
Following a heated confrontation where Paul slapped Punk across the face, the rivalry intensified with Punk retaliating by trapping Paul's ally, Pat McAfee, in a porta-potty.—
Andrew Ravens,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 Dec. 2025
Adjective
-
Meanwhile, in Oxford, Mississippi, an equally giddy and slightly more vindictive fanbase had all of about 30 minutes to celebrate their team’s win.—
Dana O’Neil,
CNN Money,
9 Jan. 2026
-
Who is not petty or vindictive.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
2 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Anyone who’s been judged, rejected, or ghosted for doing so knows how punishing that vulnerability can be.—
Jenna Ryu,
SELF,
14 Jan. 2026
-
More than two months ago, Israel and Hamas signed a cease-fire agreement that offered Palestinians in Gaza a hope of respite after a punishing two-year Israeli bombardment that left much of their enclave in ruins.—
Samuel Granados,
New York Times,
12 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Brian Heil played Don Jose with angst and ultimately, revengeful rage as Carmen’s spurned lover.—
Marcia Luttrell,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
21 Dec. 2025
-
This latest installment finds the Sully family grieving one of their own when a new threat emerges in the form of the Fire tribe, an antagonistic group of Na’vi volcano-dwellers led by the revengeful Varang (Oona Chaplin in her franchise debut).—
Jack Dunn,
Variety,
2 Dec. 2025
Adjective
-
Desperate migrants are forced to leave Greenland after a malevolent force makes their island uninhabitable.—
Mia Galuppo,
HollywoodReporter,
10 Jan. 2026
-
The deceased individuals who were subjected to corpse-killing were not always once powerful and malevolent, like King Abel.—
Rivka Galchen,
New Yorker,
7 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
These computer viruses often spread through malicious ads embedded in popular websites or infected links in YouTube video descriptions, according to SpyCloud.—
Tereza Pultarova,
Space.com,
15 Jan. 2026
-
Jesse Jeremiah, 51, was arrested on suspicion of malicious destruction of railroad property, vandalism and unlawfully stealing and carrying away copper materials, jail records show.—
Rosalio Ahumada,
Sacbee.com,
15 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Avenging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/avenging. Accessed 18 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
