FEDERAL Synonyms: 78 Similar and Opposite Words

federal 1 of 2

adjective

Definition of federal

as in national

of or relating to a federation or to its central government A federal system of government distributes power between a country's central and regional governments. The President, Congress, and the Supreme Court are all part of the federal government of the United States.

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Federal

2 of 2

noun

as in fed

Related Words

as in Confederate

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

civilian

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 federal

Adjective

Under the new guidance, ATF will no longer require registration unless the buyer lives in one of about 15 states that have state laws requiring that people go through the federal permitting process. — ABC News, 9 Oct. 2026 Surely most people would prefer to see big cuts to federal agencies made with thoughtfulness and care? — Sheelah Kolhatkar, New Yorker, 9 Oct. 2026 Jamie Courville and her husband, Chris Reynolds, moved to Gowanus in 2009, a year before the canal was designated a Superfund site and the federal clean-up process kicked off. — Kim Velsey, Curbed, 9 Oct. 2026 New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said Belgal was pulling into a parking space when a federal officer in plainclothes approached with his gun drawn, followed by another federal officer who also wasn’t in uniform. — Rebecca Santana, Los Angeles Times, 9 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for federal

Recent Examples of Synonyms for federal

Adjective

But national Democrats have been eying the race for months due to the state’s large Black population, and Obama’s ad is a clear effort to juice turnout.

— Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 12 Oct. 2026
It was put on by a company called Candle House, which, though little-known as of yet in the theatrical mainstream, has enough of a cult national reputation that nearly all of the 76 shows sold out pretty much just on word of mouth, at $247 a pop.

— Chris Willman, Variety, 11 Oct. 2026

Definition of national

Noun

But eating too much fiber too quickly can cause gastrointestinal (GI) distress or cramps.

— Stephanie Brown, Verywell Health, 2 Oct. 2026
Boston Children's was also top-ranked in the area of neonatology, pediatric gastroenterology & GI Surgery, pediatric nephrology, pediatric neurology & neurosurgery, pediatric pulmonology & lung surgery and pediatric urology.

— Neal Riley, CBS News, 15 Sep. 2026

Definition of GI

Noun

He gets dinged for a pesky OWI, loses his job at CBS, and then gets outed by some nark in Oklahoma.

— Zach Dean OutKick, FOXNews.com, 8 Oct. 2026
But the very act of putting on a wearable—of willingly adorning oneself with a tiny computerized narc—is an act of surrender.

— Hillary Busis, Vanity Fair, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of narc

Noun

Unifi and 10 other North and Central American yarn producers launched YarnProof, an initiative using FibreTrace technology to embed an invisible, permanent tracer into polyester filament yarn during extrusion.

— Alexandra Harrell, Footwear News, 13 Oct. 2026
This imaging test uses a tracer that attaches to PSMA proteins, allowing doctors to identify where prostate cancer cells may be located throughout the body.

— Lauryn Higgins, Flow Space, 15 June 2026

Definition of tracer

Noun

Less than a month later, plainclothesmen arrested Nassar at a local tire store, and Munford took him into custody.

— Jason Schmidt, Glamour, 30 Oct. 2018
Hustling bucks and ducking the Third Division boys, those earnest young plainclothesmen assigned to the vice squad who work out of the 17th Precinct on the East Side.

— Gail Sheehy, Daily Intelligencer, 9 Sep. 2017

Definition of plainclothesman

Noun

Tuck drumstick ends under band of skin across the tail if present or tie drumsticks securely to tail using 100%- cotton kitchen string.

— Sarah Martens, Better Homes & Gardens, 14 Oct. 2026
My barometer will always be whether the AI is the tail that’s wagging the dog.

— Andreas Wiseman, Deadline, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of tail

Browse Nearby Words

fed

federal

Federal

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Federal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/federal. Accessed 16 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of federal

adjective

noun

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

zenith

Popular in Grammar & Usage

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

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

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Popular in Wordplay

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

The Words of the Week - Oct. 16

Popular

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

Games & Quizzes