1
as in teams
a group of people working together on a task
a gang of neighborhood residents spent the weekend cleaning up the park
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in cliques
a group of people sharing a common interest and relating together socially
the whole gang went out for pizza the school's computer hackers had their own little gang
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in Mafias
a group involved in secret or criminal activities
politicians promising to stop the growth of inner-city gangs
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 gangs
Kristine Phillips, IndyStar, 5 Nov. 2025
While a decade ago the majority of knife crime perpetrated by young people was related to gangs, this is no longer the case, James Alexander, an associate enterprise fellow in criminology at London Metropolitan University, told CNN.
—Catherine Nicholls, CNN Money, 4 Nov. 2025
The emerging damage of deepfakes On September 15th, 2025, Reuters reported that international gangs were conducting fraud operations by using AI to make online romance scams more believable.
—Matt Emma, USA Today, 3 Nov. 2025
In 2021, the most recent year for which there’s data, more than 800,000 Filipinos were kidnapped by the gangs who dominate this trade in the South Pacific.
—Natalia Paradies, Rolling Stone, 31 Oct. 2025
The deadly raid has renewed debate in Brazil over police tactics, human rights, and the government’s ongoing struggle to control powerful gangs entrenched in Rio’s impoverished communities.
—Louis Casiano, FOXNews.com, 30 Oct. 2025
He was reared in an environment polluted with drugs, gangs and violence.
—Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 30 Oct. 2025
The rival gangs’ history of violence in the East Bay is well-documented, as is its history of turning festive celebrations into scenes of murder and mayhem.
—Harry Harris, Mercury News, 29 Oct. 2025
The shooter and victim were members of rival motorcycle gangs, according to court documents.
—City News Service, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 Oct. 2025
Noun
An IndyStar investigation, which is based on interviews with four dozen people, including current and former inmates, their families and former employees, found Miami Correctional is constantly beset by violence fueled by gangs and drugs.
—Kristine Phillips, IndyStar, 5 Nov. 2025
While a decade ago the majority of knife crime perpetrated by young people was related to gangs, this is no longer the case, James Alexander, an associate enterprise fellow in criminology at London Metropolitan University, told CNN.
—Catherine Nicholls, CNN Money, 4 Nov. 2025
The emerging damage of deepfakes On September 15th, 2025, Reuters reported that international gangs were conducting fraud operations by using AI to make online romance scams more believable.
—Matt Emma, USA Today, 3 Nov. 2025
In 2021, the most recent year for which there’s data, more than 800,000 Filipinos were kidnapped by the gangs who dominate this trade in the South Pacific.
—Natalia Paradies, Rolling Stone, 31 Oct. 2025
The deadly raid has renewed debate in Brazil over police tactics, human rights, and the government’s ongoing struggle to control powerful gangs entrenched in Rio’s impoverished communities.
—Louis Casiano, FOXNews.com, 30 Oct. 2025
He was reared in an environment polluted with drugs, gangs and violence.
—Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 30 Oct. 2025
The rival gangs’ history of violence in the East Bay is well-documented, as is its history of turning festive celebrations into scenes of murder and mayhem.
—Harry Harris, Mercury News, 29 Oct. 2025
The shooter and victim were members of rival motorcycle gangs, according to court documents.
—City News Service, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gangs
Noun
-
An ugly opening half, which featured the teams combining for 6-of-24 shooting in the game’s first 10 minutes, saw the visiting Wildcats catch fire from beyond the arc.—
Hunter Bailey,
Charlotte Observer,
12 Nov. 2025
-
One-by-one, these teams utterly transformed their way of working because the entire design and execution of the program was based on delighting them and adding value at every touchpoint.—
Phil Gilbert,
Fortune,
12 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
These internal cliques, or deputy gangs, which have been tied to specific LASD precincts, have names like the Banditos, the Grim Reapers, and the Regulators.—
Jesse Hyde,
Rolling Stone,
21 Oct. 2025
-
At the Dallas Street property, small cliques of armed men, mostly Venezuelans and Mexicans, fought an ongoing turf war.—
Jonathan Blitzer,
New Yorker,
8 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Players could control a huge cast of classic characters from the franchise in a toybox mash-up of different eras, wiping out armies of bad guys at a clip.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
4 Nov. 2025
-
At the center is Jinu, the brooding lead with a mysterious hold on both the protagonist Rumi and armies of fans.—
Brittany Talarico,
PEOPLE,
4 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Organizations that adopt this mindset at scale in the coming years will be the true winners—in the marketplace, within their communities, and even on the battlefield.—
Phil Gilbert,
Fortune,
12 Nov. 2025
-
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has highlighted Indigenous communities as key players in this year’s COP30 negotiations.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
12 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Such crackdowns attract notice from Boswell, who detects a civilian ally in his fight against local syndicates.—
Dennis Harvey,
Variety,
28 Oct. 2025
-
Elon Musk’s SpaceX has disabled more than 2,500 Starlink devices in and around scam centers in Myanmar, following warnings from activists that mainly Chinese syndicates were using the technology to defraud people worldwide.—
Mithil Aggarwal,
NBC news,
23 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
The downtime will allow crews to install a new track switch before winter arrives.—
Eric D. Lawrence,
Freep.com,
10 Nov. 2025
-
The municipality actively supports film crews, offering strong logistical coordination.—
Rafa Sales Ross,
Variety,
10 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
As the confrontation escalated, agents deployed a flash-bang device while crowds threw bricks and paint cans from rooftops.—
Greg Wehner,
FOXNews.com,
9 Nov. 2025
-
Zion National Park is stunning and peaceful in winter, with fewer crowds and rare access to scenic drives by personal vehicle.—
Stephanie Vermillion,
Travel + Leisure,
9 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Hamas has sought to exert control over the rest of the enclave, including in violent clashes with rival clans, some of which receive backing from Israel, and at least one public execution.—
Chantal Da Silva,
NBC news,
3 Nov. 2025
-
In classical antiquity, the mountainous region was notorious for bandits; in modern times, blood feuds among clans were rife.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
22 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Gangs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gangs. Accessed 18 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share