as in pats
to touch or handle in a tender or loving manner
gently caressed her hair
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for caresses
Verb
-
Penny pats Harry's snout and jumps at his face at home.—
Rachael O'Connor,
MSNBC Newsweek,
20 Aug. 2025 -
As a matter of fact, pats on the back are probably very few and far between.—
Nour Rahal,
Freep.com,
10 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Henry brushes it off as a nightmare; after Bug moves on, Beauchamp strokes the medallion and sings himself to sleep.—
Kimberly Roots,
TVLine,
22 Aug. 2025
-
In the town’s maternity ward, the only functioning facility of its kind for miles, Taisiya strokes Assol, her daughter born Sunday into a world where suddenly the risks of being in Sloviansk have multiplied.—
Nick Paton Walsh,
CNN Money,
11 Aug. 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.
Cite this Entry
“Caresses.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/caresses. Accessed 10 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share