followers

noun

plural of follower
1
as in adherents
one who follows the opinions or teachings of another the followers of Gandhi have spread his philosophy of nonviolence all over the world

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in imitators
a person who adopts the appearance or behavior of another especially in an obvious way Brando's Method acting inspired a whole generation of mumbling followers

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 followers First was comic and content creator, George Brett Olson, who did a breakdown (watch it below) accusing an AI Instagram account with 300,000 followers of seemingly ripped off his joke word for word. — James Hibberd, HollywoodReporter, 16 Oct. 2026 The series has nearly 1 million followers across TikTok and Instagram. — Ethan Shanfeld, Variety, 16 Oct. 2026 Other followers focused on the actress's return to television. — Danielle Minnetian, FOXNews.com, 15 Oct. 2026 The president posted on Truth Social for his followers to pressure Cotton into voting for the Sunshine Protection Act of 2025, going as far as to post the senator’s personal phone number. — Lexi Lonas Cochran, The Hill, 14 Oct. 2026 Brand, before entering his plea earlier this year, referred to his ongoing legal battle in a video shared with social media followers. — Alexandra Del Rosario, Los Angeles Times, 14 Oct. 2026 The posts were so frequent that some of her followers even reached out to Sivitz with concern. — Maya Georgi, Rolling Stone, 10 Oct. 2026 Curcio is also known for running a popular screenwriting TikTok account with nearly 200K followers and over 10M likes, and has partnered with studios like Neon, A24 and Paramount to promote films. — Matt Grobar, Deadline, 9 Oct. 2026 The case has attracted national attention and put a spotlight on some Americans’ frustrations with the healthcare system, as Mangione has seen an outpouring of support from devoted followers who sympathize with Mangione’s cause. — Kara Scannell, CNN Money, 9 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for followers
  1. adherents
  2. imitators
  3. disciples
  4. echoes
Noun
  • Since the administration kicked off its anti-AI doomerism social media campaign, taking particular aim at EA and its adherents’ belief that AI carries a high risk of ending humanity—anti-AI sentiment seems to have grown.
    — Beatrice Nolan, Fortune, 23 Sep. 2026
  • When brutal rationalism is challenged, especially by traditionalists, its defenders will often justify themselves by pointing to the intelligence of its adherents.
    — Jay Caspian Kang, New Yorker, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of adherents
Noun
  • Deafheaven broke the mold by introducing blinding light to rock music’s darkest corner, but after wave upon wave of imitators, the only subversion left is to blot out the sun.
    — Patrick Lyons, Pitchfork, 13 Oct. 2026
  • The Dadaists used this gleefully and compulsively (see René Clair and Francis Picabia’s wacky Entr’Acte); so, famously, did Hideo Nakata in Y2K hit The Ring and countless imitators.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of imitators
Noun
  • In particular, Greek mathematician-philosopher Pythagoras and his disciples may have associated beans with reincarnation, so some thought eating them was technically an act of cannibalism.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 9 Oct. 2026
  • In the New Testament, Jesus and his disciples take part in those pilgrimages.
    — Shay Rabineau, The Conversation, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of disciples
Noun
  • The echoes of this resonant throughout the ages and the vibrations from such are more relevant than ever.
    — Borys Kit, HollywoodReporter, 6 Oct. 2026
  • Audiences will no doubt see broad echoes of what could have been in Ali’s passionate and often ruthless Latif.
    — CT Jones, Rolling Stone, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of echoes

Browse Nearby Words

follower
followers
followership
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Followers.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/followers. Accessed 19 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of fervid

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

'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'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

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

Did 'orange' the fruit or the color come first?
See More

Popular

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'
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
artwork of illustrated limes with the text limes and smile with an arrow connecting the two words
Quiz: Spot the Anagram! Scramble these words to find new words with the e...
See All