as in tendency
a habitual attraction to some activity or thing
left to her own devices she'd eat at a fast-food restaurant every night of the week
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
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 devices
Across the other devices, both Mac and Wearables, Home & Accessories sales declined year over year, while the market anticipated slight growth.
—
Jeff Marks, CNBC, 30 Jan. 2026
Micro-robots and devices To demonstrate practical applications, the team fabricated several working devices.
—Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 29 Jan. 2026
That famous walk was a turning point in the fight against these lethal devices.
—Lizz Schumer, PEOPLE, 29 Jan. 2026
School districts would also have to develop their own AI policies for how students and teachers can use the technology at school and on school devices.
—Becca Savransky, Idaho Statesman, 29 Jan. 2026
The defense called a digital forensics expert who testified his analysis of devices in this case does not support prosecutors’ catfishing theory.
—Lauren Del Valle, CNN Money, 29 Jan. 2026
When Amazon founder Jeff Bezos reported in 2016 that over 250,000 people had proposed to their Alexa devices, commentators laughed it off.
—Lori Andrews, Mercury News, 29 Jan. 2026
Biometric intelligence requires costly devices.
—Sahar Hashmi, Forbes.com, 29 Jan. 2026
The company shipped patients excessive volumes of devices each month, using these fraudulent billings to artificially inflate the company’s financial reporting and its stock price, the government alleged.
—Sam Tabachnik, Denver Post, 22 Jan. 2026
Jeff Marks, CNBC, 30 Jan. 2026
Micro-robots and devices To demonstrate practical applications, the team fabricated several working devices.
—Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 29 Jan. 2026
That famous walk was a turning point in the fight against these lethal devices.
—Lizz Schumer, PEOPLE, 29 Jan. 2026
School districts would also have to develop their own AI policies for how students and teachers can use the technology at school and on school devices.
—Becca Savransky, Idaho Statesman, 29 Jan. 2026
The defense called a digital forensics expert who testified his analysis of devices in this case does not support prosecutors’ catfishing theory.
—Lauren Del Valle, CNN Money, 29 Jan. 2026
When Amazon founder Jeff Bezos reported in 2016 that over 250,000 people had proposed to their Alexa devices, commentators laughed it off.
—Lori Andrews, Mercury News, 29 Jan. 2026
Biometric intelligence requires costly devices.
—Sahar Hashmi, Forbes.com, 29 Jan. 2026
The company shipped patients excessive volumes of devices each month, using these fraudulent billings to artificially inflate the company’s financial reporting and its stock price, the government alleged.
—Sam Tabachnik, Denver Post, 22 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for devices
Noun
-
In these cases, crypto prices have demonstrated a historical tendency to benefit.—
Matthew Kayser,
Freep.com,
30 Jan. 2026
-
The team has also shown a tendency to sign former top-100 draft picks heading into a second contract.—
Nick Harris,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
30 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
The Broncos expect Stidham to play well given his mental aptitude, preparation and personality.—
Troy Renck,
Denver Post,
22 Jan. 2026
-
Woodall plays a talented piano tuner whose meticulous skills for tuning pianos lead him to discover an unexpected aptitude for cracking safes, turning his life upside down.—
Anthony D'Alessandro,
Deadline,
14 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Up to us are judgment, inclination, desire, aversion — in short, whatever is our own doing.—
Massimo Pigliucci,
Big Think,
29 Jan. 2026
-
Trump’s inclinations to make every race about him could foul this for the GOP.—
Philip Elliott,
Time,
26 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Benjamin Moore Cinnamon Slate 2113-40 Designer Susan Jamieson has an affinity for muted tones with a bit of nuance, like Cinnamon Slate by Benjamin Moore.—
Tessa Cooper,
Southern Living,
26 Jan. 2026
-
George Saunders has an affinity for ghosts.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Over the subsequent stories, Goodman crafts subtle investigations of the relations between siblings, the fine blend of anxiety and pride parents feel for their offspring, and the bemused affection an aunt or uncle might feel for their aimless nieces or haphazard nephews.—
Chloe Schama,
Vogue,
24 Jan. 2026
-
Chiarella is hyper-attuned to the ways that men not only shield emotion through machismo, but also couch affection in physical force.—
Natalia Winkelman,
IndieWire,
24 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
But most of the jazz world ended up moving in the other direction, fleeing to New York and Paris and never looking back as if chasing elite romance, and this was as valid an impulse as chasing the sun.—
Celina Pereira,
Los Angeles Times,
28 Jan. 2026
-
Or the impulse that really just got like cranked two 11 that kind of forced you into this?—
Outside Online,
Outside Online,
28 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Desserts, salads, chicken, roasted potatoes…what can’t be improved by the yellow fruit’s sunny disposition?—
Maggie Meyer Glisan,
Better Homes & Gardens,
10 Jan. 2026
-
Recall that a year prior to Wardlaw passing her hot check, criminal court records confirm her guilty disposition for the crime of skipping out on a wholly different criminal-court appearance, which is a class C misdemeanor.—
Robert Steinbuch,
Arkansas Online,
9 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Devices.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/devices. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
