as in defect
something that spoils the appearance or completeness of a thing
noted the flaw in the diamond before I bought it
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in to damage
to reduce the soundness, effectiveness, or perfection of
that crack has flawed the vase to the extent that its value in the antiques market is greatly reduced
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of flaw
Cameron Partridge, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025
Other organizations and scientists have refuted the DOE’s review, including the American Meteorological Society, which highlighted further flaws in the report and urged a correction of the findings by the agency.
—Connor Greene, Time, 2 Sep. 2025
EW.com, 15 Aug. 2025
Last December, a federal bankruptcy court judge in Texas stopped a sale to The Onion, saying the bankruptcy auction process was flawed.
—Tovia Smith, NPR, 13 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for flaw
Noun
This misalignment isn’t new, but with AI accelerating the pace of business, what was once a structural flaw has become an existential threat.
—Cameron Partridge, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025
Other organizations and scientists have refuted the DOE’s review, including the American Meteorological Society, which highlighted further flaws in the report and urged a correction of the findings by the agency.
—Connor Greene, Time, 2 Sep. 2025
Verb
Like, people aren't allowed to be flawed now?
—EW.com, 15 Aug. 2025
Last December, a federal bankruptcy court judge in Texas stopped a sale to The Onion, saying the bankruptcy auction process was flawed.
—Tovia Smith, NPR, 13 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for flaw
Recent Examples of Synonyms for flaw
Noun
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When tested in rats with cranial bone defects, the results were striking.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
8 Sep. 2025
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The researchers concluded that a higher body mass index (BMI) is the main factor linked to these defects in the knees.—
Angelica Stabile,
FOXNews.com,
7 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Washing a couch or sofa, professional carpet and upholstery cleaner Ben Brazell says, is more precarious than carpet cleaning because the upholstery is often a lot more expensive and much easier to damage.—
Hallie Milstein,
Southern Living,
8 Sep. 2025
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Private homes, farm buildings and power lines were damaged, Gusev said.—
David Brennan,
ABC News,
7 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Gopher snakes tend to be tan-colored with large square brown blotches or saddles along their backs and smaller gray spots on their sides.—
Sacbee.com,
Sacbee.com,
28 Aug. 2025
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The baby was purple-gray-colored, in blotches; wet, smeared in blood and what looked like whitish wax.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
29 July 2025
Verb
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Boy Meets World — Savage’s comedy legacy has been marred by multiple misconduct allegations over the years.—
Emily Blackwood,
PEOPLE,
5 Sep. 2025
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Holes marred the walls in the kitchen under the dish machine, dry storage and dish storage rooms.—
David J. Neal,
Miami Herald,
5 Sep. 2025
Noun
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But the scars from that era are still very much present in society, and the son, Im Dong-hwan, represents the youth of today who are trying to come to terms with that generational complexity and its legacy.—
Patrick Brzeski,
HollywoodReporter,
9 Sep. 2025
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Extensive research in the past few years has shown that the scars of redlining persist, particularly in terms of poorer health outcomes for residents of those areas.—
Betty Lin-Fisher,
USA Today,
9 Sep. 2025
Verb
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But Barman and Wilke noted that despite the goal of creating a low-cost, customizable vehicle, the company did not want to compromise on value.—
Jessica Mathews,
Fortune,
10 Sep. 2025
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Lovevook Laptop Tote Bag Looking stylish for work doesn’t have to mean compromising on function.—
Rosie Marder,
Travel + Leisure,
9 Sep. 2025
Verb
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One of two firefighters injured in a house fire in Fort Worth’s Historic Southside on Wednesday has been released from the hospital, while the other is recovering in the burn unit at Parkland Hospital, officials said.—
Shambhavi Rimal,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
5 Sep. 2025
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McCaffrey missed the first eight games of the season, then injured his knee in a Week 13 game in Buffalo, ending his season.—
Matt Barrows,
New York Times,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Tony and Ziva race to the scene, finding the place crippled by a power outage followed by a ransom request for 115 million Euros.—
Matt Webb Mitovich,
TVLine,
4 Sep. 2025
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The last time active-duty military was sent to Chicago against the wishes of local officials was on July 4, 1894, according to the archives of the Chicago Tribune, when a labor dispute at a Pullman factory crippled the nation’s rail industry and resulted in days of rioting.—
Andy Rose,
CNN Money,
3 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Flaw.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flaw. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.
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