ballads

noun

plural of ballad
as in songs
a short musical composition for the human voice often with instrumental accompaniment a haunting ballad about lost love and loneliness

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 ballads As a result, the concert featured no acoustic sets, no power ballads, no reason for anybody to sit down. — Rodney Ho, AJC.com, 28 Aug. 2026 The soft, soothing sounds of Anne Murray and the over-the-top, emotional ballads of Barbra Streisand had filled our living room and shaped my understanding of female singers. — Lisa Whittington-Hill, Longreads, 27 Aug. 2026 Her mother, Avie Lee Parton, ran the household and was fond of singing traditional Appalachian ballads. — Corky Siemaszko, NBC news, 25 Aug. 2026 Any songwriter should be so lucky — to have one of your hallmark tunes be lovingly swept out from under you and become one of the definitive ballads of pop music. — Los Angeles Times, 25 Aug. 2026 The result is a self-reflective collection of empowering pop anthems and wistful ballads that detail not only the dissolution of a relationship but a return to oneself. — Ilana Kaplan, PEOPLE, 21 Aug. 2026 Up until that point, a lot of people thought that my greatest strength was to sing heartbreak ballads. — Jeffrey Masters, New Yorker, 16 Aug. 2026 The two-time Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee — who’s been honored for his work as a solo artist and a member of Faces — is known for belting out ballads and rock numbers through an unmistake gravelly voice. — Brian Niemietz, New York Daily News, 12 Aug. 2026 Their videos work as a modern take on the narcocorridos – ballads about the trafficking underworld that drug kingpins used to praise themselves and communicate with each other, said security expert Alexei Chévez. — Rey Rodríguez, CNN Money, 8 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ballads
  1. songs
  2. hymns
  3. lyrics
  4. anthems
  5. vocals
Noun
  • But the biggest legacy Parton leaves is her songwriting, and three songs define her more than any others.
    — Wendy Hargreaves, Fortune, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Video showed locals draped in Spanish flags, shouting anti-migrant slogans, and singing Spanish songs, torching the camp and throwing migrants’ belongings in the Mediterranean or into bonfires.
    — Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of songs
Noun
  • The scholar of religion Friedrich Max Müller (1823–1900) noticed that many Vedic hymns praise different deities using the same superlatives and ascribe to them the same mythological feats.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Avie Lee filled the family's two-room home with music by singing hymns, folk songs and traditional mountain music.
    — Devarrick Turner, USA Today, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of hymns
Noun
  • Less pleading and more of a warning, Beyoncé’s version of the beloved hit features different lyrics and an introduction that directly references the original track.
    — Bailey Richards, PEOPLE, 1 Sep. 2026
  • Additionally, both the moonwalk and the glove feature in the lyrics.
    — Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of lyrics
Noun
  • Not with hardcore perreo or the female empowerment anthems that have become her trademark, but with the vulnerability of a broken heart.
    — Leila Cobo, Billboard, 28 Aug. 2026
  • Dolly Parton, the brilliant songwriter and beloved country singer who has died at age 80, wrote one of the great anthems of the American working class.
    — John Nichols, Washington Post, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of anthems
Noun
  • Anurag Saikia composed the music for the first track, which features vocals by Jyoti Nooran and lyrics by Shakeel Azmi.
    — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 3 Sep. 2026
  • The 25-year-old California singer-songwriter staked out his turf by taking pride in the ordinariness of his hit, from the mild-mannered vocals to the drama-free sincerity of his romantic imagery.
    — Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of vocals

Browse Nearby Words

ballad
ballads
ballast
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Cite this Entry

“Ballads.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ballads. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

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