dead heats

noun

plural of dead heat
as in ties
a situation in which neither participant in a contest, competition, or struggle comes out ahead of the other the horses crossed the finish line in a dead heat

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for dead heats
  1. ties
  2. draws
Noun
  • The game featured 23 lead changes and 13 ties — with both teams shooting 55% from the field.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 14 July 2026
  • The game featured 23 lead changes and 13 ties — with both teams shooting 55% from the field.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 13 July 2026
Definition of ties
Noun
  • Curry will be among the biggest draws for the tournament that will look to break last year’s record of 84,321 fans in attendance.
    — Chris Biderman, Sacbee.com, 8 July 2026
  • Today, one of it’s biggest draws is the Seawater Spa, home to one of North America's only ocean-fed thalassotherapy experiences.
    — Kate Donnelly, Forbes.com, 7 July 2026
Definition of draws
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.

Browse Nearby Words

dead heat
dead heats
deadlock
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Dead heats.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dead%20heats. Accessed 15 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!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

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

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

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

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

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

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 10
See More

Popular

See More

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

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
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
banana-mirrored
Contradictory Words Quiz Pick out which word means one thing…and the opp...
See All