as in bursts
a sudden intense expression of strong feeling
the audience responded to the comedian's joke with gales of laughter
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Recent Examples of gales
The weather in Wales was terrible, with snow and freezing temperatures and Arctic gales.
—
Christine Smallwood, Harpers Magazine, 24 Mar. 2026
Out in the ferocious gales of the North Sea, on the overcrowded routes of the Irish Sea and the English Channel, and off to the islands’ west, the wide Atlantic herself.
—Literary Hub, 19 Nov. 2025
Such physical effects of wind are translatable; and so, most important of all, are the quarters from which the blasts or the breezes or the gales appear to come.
—Big Think, 18 Nov. 2025
Fifty years ago this month, the gales of November swallowed the SS Edmund Fitzgerald along with her crew of 29 men, one of the largest ships to go down on Lake Superior and the Great Lakes.
—Sarah Moore, Freep.com, 4 Nov. 2025
The threat of thunderstorms, gales, and violent lightning led to the cancellation of the final day of SailGP competition in Saint-Tropez.
—Andrew Rice, New York Times, 13 Sep. 2025
Southern China also shuts down Southern China’s Hainan Island saw heavy rainfall and gales as the typhoon brushed past the island on Sunday.
—Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 25 Aug. 2025
Strong winds were also a concern in areas where residents are accustomed to heavy rain, but not necessarily cyclone-strength gales.
—Hilary Whiteman, CNN, 4 Mar. 2025
The front will have strong north to northeast winds behind it and prompt development of gales offshore of Tampico, Mexico through early Friday morning creating peak seas with 12- to 14-foot waves.
—Richard Tribou, Orlando Sentinel, 13 Feb. 2025
Christine Smallwood, Harpers Magazine, 24 Mar. 2026
Out in the ferocious gales of the North Sea, on the overcrowded routes of the Irish Sea and the English Channel, and off to the islands’ west, the wide Atlantic herself.
—Literary Hub, 19 Nov. 2025
Such physical effects of wind are translatable; and so, most important of all, are the quarters from which the blasts or the breezes or the gales appear to come.
—Big Think, 18 Nov. 2025
Fifty years ago this month, the gales of November swallowed the SS Edmund Fitzgerald along with her crew of 29 men, one of the largest ships to go down on Lake Superior and the Great Lakes.
—Sarah Moore, Freep.com, 4 Nov. 2025
The threat of thunderstorms, gales, and violent lightning led to the cancellation of the final day of SailGP competition in Saint-Tropez.
—Andrew Rice, New York Times, 13 Sep. 2025
Southern China also shuts down Southern China’s Hainan Island saw heavy rainfall and gales as the typhoon brushed past the island on Sunday.
—Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 25 Aug. 2025
Strong winds were also a concern in areas where residents are accustomed to heavy rain, but not necessarily cyclone-strength gales.
—Hilary Whiteman, CNN, 4 Mar. 2025
The front will have strong north to northeast winds behind it and prompt development of gales offshore of Tampico, Mexico through early Friday morning creating peak seas with 12- to 14-foot waves.
—Richard Tribou, Orlando Sentinel, 13 Feb. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gales
Noun
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Videos recorded by passengers show sparks and bursts of flame coming from the engine, lighting up the night sky as the aircraft gained altitude.—
Sarah Rumpf-Whitten,
FOXNews.com,
2 Apr. 2026
-
The Poison frontman, evoking the regional dialect of his native Pittsburgh, bursts with adrenaline on a typical day.—
Melissa Ruggieri,
USA Today,
2 Apr. 2026
Noun
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In Israel, loud explosions filled the air in Tel Aviv and emergency crews responded to nearly a dozen impact sites.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
28 Mar. 2026
-
According to the Iranian media, one witness reported hearing multiple explosions near Mashhad Airport shortly after 7 pm, local time.—
Moriah Thomas,
CNN Money,
28 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Sustained, strong winds with even stronger gusts are happening.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
2 Apr. 2026
-
Northwest winds will keep a chill in the air, with gusts reaching 20 to 25 mph downtown and up to 30 mph near the water and atop Twin Peaks.—
Greg Porter,
San Francisco Chronicle,
2 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Backlash was immediate given the rapper’s history of antisemitic outbursts.—
Zack Sharf,
Variety,
1 Apr. 2026
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Right now, the sun is finally moving out of several years of solar maximum—but as this week’s outbursts show, our star is not yet quiet.—
Meghan Bartels,
Scientific American,
31 Mar. 2026
Noun
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But solar flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs) — huge eruptions of solar plasma — could be a threat to Artemis astronauts venturing far beyond our planet, as could cosmic rays, which originate far beyond our solar system.—
Leonard David,
Space.com,
30 Mar. 2026
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And while many are extinct or dormant, two of them, Kīlauea and Mauna Loa, are still capable of destructive and deadly eruptions.—
Quanta Magazine,
Quanta Magazine,
27 Mar. 2026
Noun
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That was one of nine strikeouts for Bradley, who showed flashes of the electric stuff that has made the Twins so excited about his future.—
Betsy Helfand,
Twin Cities,
28 Mar. 2026
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Then, without warning, colors start rippling across its skin — flashes of deep crimson, bursts of mottled brown, rapid shifts in texture — while its eyes dart and its limbs twitch.—
Samantha Agate,
Miami Herald,
27 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Even minor changes in clouds, wind or storms can force delays, especially for a mission of this scale.—
Brandi D. Addison,
USA Today,
1 Apr. 2026
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For people living along the coast, sand also defends against intense storms and sea level rise fueled by climate change.—
Ashley Miznazi,
Miami Herald,
31 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Gales.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gales. Accessed 3 Apr. 2026.
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