conflates

verb

present tense third-person singular of conflate
1
as in confuses
to fail to differentiate (a thing) from something similar or related be careful not to conflate gossip with real news

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in combines
to turn into a single mass or entity that is more or less the same throughout the movie conflates documentary footage and dramatized reenactments so seamlessly and ingeniously that viewers may not know what is real and what is not

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 conflates Critics argue Hinton conflates perception with experience, stressing consciousness is a first-person fact, not merely a functional process. — Andréa Morris, Forbes.com, 18 June 2026 But Kennedy’s initiative conflates that genuine clinical need with claims unsupported by evidence — and some that are actively dangerous. — Jonathan Slater, STAT, 13 May 2026 Equating blanket surveillance with public safety conflates convenience with necessity. — Dp Opinion, Denver Post, 7 May 2026 Some protesters have displayed antisemitic sentiment, and used language that conflates enmity toward Israel, Zionism and Jews themselves. — Alexander Smith, NBC news, 1 May 2026 This entire season has dissected the way that modern society conflates existential and economic purpose. — Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 2 Mar. 2026 Given that women in other countries do wear lipstick as an act of resistance today, suggesting that American feminists did so in 1912 conflates their wildly different cultural contexts, and blurs one’s sense of what constitutes public dissidence. — Literary Hub, 18 Feb. 2026 Critics say that definition conflates criticism of the Israeli government with antisemitism. — Chris Sommerfeldt, New York Daily News, 2 Jan. 2026 Nobility is a social construct that conflates social status with positive character traits and has been used for centuries to justify the hoarding of power and wealth. — F.d. Flam, Twin Cities, 22 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for conflates
  1. confuses
  2. combines
  3. merges
  4. integrates
  5. mixes
  6. incorporates
  7. blends
Verb
  • These opportunists drown out the core mission, creating a cacophony of competing voices that confuses donors, crowd the inboxes of CEOs and members of Congress with colliding petitions, and paralyzes meaningful action by draining critical funding and attention away from the truly effective groups.
    — Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Time, 28 June 2026
  • But nobody confuses Harvard Extension School classes with the real thing.
    — Liz Hoffman, semafor.com, 23 June 2026
Definition of confuses
Verb
  • Dolby Cinema combines Dolby Vision projection with Dolby Atmos sound.
    — David Deal, Forbes.com, 21 July 2026
  • Its five-year-old flagship combines a multibrand retail space with a coffee shop and hosts regular events spanning music, art and fashion.
    — Rhonda Richford, Footwear News, 20 July 2026
Definition of combines
Verb
  • Johannes Heidecke, OpenAI's head of safety systems, is leaving the company following a reorganization that merges the company’s safety and research teams, Wired reports.
    — Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 14 July 2026
  • The Future is Right Now Luxury eyewear that merges technology and top-notch service is not some future aspiration.
    — K.H. Koehler, USA Today, 2 July 2026
Definition of merges
Verb
  • This event integrates curriculum, community, research, and industry, fostering interdisciplinary innovation.
    — Marybeth Gasman, Forbes.com, 21 July 2026
  • Ecotrak now integrates with Claude, Anthropic’s AI assistant, through a new connector that brings its operational data such as work orders, assets, locations and service providers into a conversational interface.
    — Arthur Zaczkiewicz, Footwear News, 21 July 2026
Definition of integrates
Verb
  • Grammy voters have demonstrated quite a bit of enthusiasm for both women in recent years, which could help the duet stand out in a field that often mixes blockbuster collaborations with less obvious critical favorites.
    — Hugh McIntyre, Forbes.com, 22 July 2026
  • Cold front mixes with tropical moisture A cold front is pushing toward the East Coast from the Midwest, stretching from just south of Arkansas all the way to New York, according to the National Weather Service.
    — Irene Wright, USA Today, 22 July 2026
Definition of mixes
Verb
  • The aircraft features a clean-sheet design and incorporates a series hybrid-electric powertrain alongside dual tiltrotors, enabling greater range, endurance and operational efficiency than conventional electric VTOL platforms.
    — Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 23 July 2026
  • In addition to Paramount itself, some observers have criticized the states’ antitrust lawsuit for not taking a holistic view of the entertainment market that incorporates streaming.
    — Todd Spangler, Variety, 23 July 2026
Definition of incorporates
Verb
  • Drawing inspiration from Superliminal, Sol blends optical illusions with an uncanny, dreamlike atmosphere that turns a familiar experience into an inventive mystery.
    — Destiny Jackson, Deadline, 23 July 2026
  • Retailtainment blends retail and entertainment into a single experience, and many of the country’s largest venues now offer free or low-cost programming to draw crowds.
    — Lauren Schuster, Charlotte Observer, 22 July 2026
Definition of blends

Browse Nearby Words

conflated
conflates
conflating
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Conflates.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/conflates. Accessed 26 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of aerie

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 24

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?
See More

Popular

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
chain-question-mark
Missing Link Quiz July 2026 Five seconds to figure out the word that fits bot...
See All