1
as in to anger
to become very angry
naturally I flared up when he insulted me
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in flurry
a sudden and usually temporary growth of activity
took medication to prevent a flare-up of her asthma
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in explosion
a sudden intense expression of strong feeling
there's no need for an angry flare-up, as we'll take care of the problem immediately
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of flare (up)
Lucy Notarantonio, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Sep. 2025
After making his debut in pads in July, Greenlaw had a flare-up of his quad on a linebacker coverage drill.
—Luca Evans, Denver Post, 20 Sep. 2025
The resulting public relations flare-up for the company pushed Coca-Cola to justify its decision to journalists.
—Rachyl Jones, semafor.com, 19 Sep. 2025
Early interventions can prevent costly flare-ups and avoid emergency visits, which average between $11,000 and $14,000 per hospital stay.
—Kent Dicks, Forbes.com, 16 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for flare (up)
Noun
Recognizing the Symptoms Granulomatous mastitis is a chronic, unpredictable breast inflammation with flare-ups similar to autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, lupus or inflammatory thyroid disorders.
—Lucy Notarantonio, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Sep. 2025
After making his debut in pads in July, Greenlaw had a flare-up of his quad on a linebacker coverage drill.
—Luca Evans, Denver Post, 20 Sep. 2025
The resulting public relations flare-up for the company pushed Coca-Cola to justify its decision to journalists.
—Rachyl Jones, semafor.com, 19 Sep. 2025
Early interventions can prevent costly flare-ups and avoid emergency visits, which average between $11,000 and $14,000 per hospital stay.
—Kent Dicks, Forbes.com, 16 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for flare (up)
Recent Examples of Synonyms for flare (up)
Verb
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And nothing angers the Survivor gods more than reality TV hubris.—
Dalton Ross,
Entertainment Weekly,
2 Oct. 2025
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Comments the host made after the murder of right wing activist and influencer Charlie Kirk angered MAGA supporters and saw the nation’s largest station group, Nexstar – which has its own mega merger up for review at the FCC – preempt the late night staple.—
Jill Goldsmith,
Deadline,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
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During its first flyby of Saturn’s moon Enceladus in 2005, NASA’s Cassini spacecraft captured dramatic water ice plumes erupting into space from the moon’s south pole.—
Chris Young,
Interesting Engineering,
2 Oct. 2025
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The leaves on the park’s deciduous trees erupt into every shade of deep scarlet, fiery orange, and golden yellow—and visitors have front-row seats to see it all.—
Tara Massouleh McCay,
Southern Living,
2 Oct. 2025
Noun
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After the Dolphins’ early flurry — 14 of their points came off Young turnovers — the Panthers kept Miami (1-4) off the scoreboard for five consecutive series.—
Joseph Person,
New York Times,
6 Oct. 2025
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The American serial killer, whose crimes would go on to inspire a flurry of horror films (including Psycho and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre), was also known as the Butcher of Plainfield.—
Yasmeen Hamadeh,
PEOPLE,
5 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Florida, meanwhile, had an offensive explosion with 457 yards on a night when quarterback DJ Lagway and receiver Dallas Wilson — making his college debut after a foot injury sidelined the freshman prior to Saturday — showed off the upside the Gators have been waiting for.—
Grace Raynor,
New York Times,
5 Oct. 2025
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Attack largest of war on Lviv, Governor says A Reuters correspondent heard explosions booming across the dark morning sky as air defenses engaged targets from several directions.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
5 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The Milford store is less likely to snarl traffic, though, since it's located about 4 miles east of downtown Milford off State Route 28, sharing a spacious lot and side street with a new Aldi store.—
Patricia Gallagher Newberry,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
2 Oct. 2025
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The howling, snarling wolves are at bay.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
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From there the phrase has exploded with TikTokers and even some Reddit users finding ways to incorporate the term and its accompanying hand gestures into their content.—
Jack Beresford,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Oct. 2025
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The post also included a video showing aerial footage of a fast-moving boat at sea that suddenly explodes.—
Antonio María Delgado,
Miami Herald,
3 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Its approach to comedy is ripped straight from the world of musical cast parties and improv shows, with every performer doing their best to turn every line into a GIF-able burst of wholesome self-deprecation.—
Christian Zilko,
IndieWire,
3 Oct. 2025
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This simple yet powerful step turned noisy, unreliable photon signals into clean bursts of single photons — a breakthrough for future quantum technologies.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
3 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The drama centers on 17-year-old Lee Jooin (Seo Su-bin), an unpredictable high school student whose angry outburst creates ripple effects throughout her world.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
1 Oct. 2025
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Late in the Lynx's 86-81 Game 4 loss to Phoenix, Collier suffered an ankle injury on a controversial no-call that resulted in a fiery sideline outburst from Minnesota head coach Cheryl Reeve.—
Matt Audilet,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Flare (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flare%20%28up%29. Accessed 9 Oct. 2025.
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