DEAD ENDS Synonyms: 116 Similar and Opposite Words

dead-ends 1 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of dead-end

as in ends

to come to an end after several fruitless years, the research seems to have simply dead-ended

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

dead ends

2 of 2

noun

plural of dead end

as in secondary roads

Related Words

as in bottlenecks

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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 dead-ends

Verb

Boca Chica Beach is a free, undeveloped eight-mile stretch of Gulf shoreline near Brownsville—the southernmost city in Texas—where Highway 4 dead-ends at the water and SpaceX’s Starbase launch towers loom to the north. — Catherina Gioino, Fortune, 28 June 2026 The one road in—NW Torreya Park Road—dead-ends at the Gregory House. — Carrie Honaker, Travel + Leisure, 3 Apr. 2026 That is one of many problems that Zara and Luke go on to dodge, including dead-ends, dead bodies and a drunken mom. — Randy Myers, Mercury News, 23 Jan. 2026 With three exposures on a block that dead-ends above the East River, the house is also filled with beautiful light. — Kim Velsey, Curbed, 22 Sep. 2025 Doubles, glitches, erotic dread, narrative dead-ends. — Literary Hub, 6 Aug. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for dead-ends

Verb

Experts, including Higel, are doubtful that the Iraqi government will be able to disarm the Iran-loyal groups even if war between Iran and the US ends.

— Sarah Tamimi, CNN Money, 30 Sep. 2026
As for what’s going on with the cryptic buying up of team shares, that remains an ongoing mystery for much of the episode — one that ends without Higgins and Rebecca finding out who’s really behind the shenanigans.

— Keith Phipps, Vulture, 30 Sep. 2026

Definition of ends

Noun

Union Pacific and Norfolk Southern cite 500-plus supportive customers, more than 2,000 filed statements, and backers including trucking giant Knight-Swift and a claim of 2 million fewer truckloads on highways.

— Glenn Taylor, Footwear News, 24 Sep. 2026
For decades, the story has focused on population loss, empty storefronts, highways that divided neighborhoods and a downtown that too often goes quiet after work.

— Mark Taylor, Hartford Courant, 23 Sep. 2026

Definition of highways

Verb

The Cowboys get the benefit of a Zay Flowers drop on third down that stops the red-hot Ravens offense in the red zone.

— Jim Barnes, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 27 Sep. 2026
When Bender considers moving to a rival network, Wever fleshes out the tough carapace of a woman who, even under the thorniest of circumstances, never stops calculating her next move.

— Justin Chang, New Yorker, 25 Sep. 2026

Definition of stops

Noun

The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite is coming off back-to-back record closes.

— Jeff Marks, CNBC, 23 Sep. 2026
How much of that reporting burden will reach portfolio companies remains unclear, but some of it likely will as PE sponsors seek standardized KPIs, faster financial closes, more granular operational metrics and clearer governance documentation.

— Nate Heeren, Forbes.com, 23 Sep. 2026

Definition of closes

Noun

With plenty to build on considering the way running back Kenneth Walker III’s presence in the backfield is creating crucial dilemmas for opposing defenses that for too long have been able to just predicate everything on stopping Mahomes.

— Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 24 Sep. 2026
Like the genre itself, the final season’s lingering dilemmas aren’t unheard of, but the way they’re explored is unique, creative, and insightful.

— Ben Travers, IndieWire, 10 Sep. 2026

Definition of dilemmas

Verb

This natural inversion destroys leadership, fractures relationships and halts self-improvement.

— Brendan Keegan, Forbes.com, 23 Sep. 2026
This halts the nuclear fusion process — which involves converting that hydrogen to helium — leading to the stars collapsing and shedding their outer layers to become a white dwarf with around the mass of the sun crammed into the width of Earth.

— Robert Lea, Space.com, 16 Sep. 2026

Definition of halts

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dead-ending

dead-ends

dead ends

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“Dead-ends.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dead-ends. Accessed 3 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of dead-ends

verb

noun

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