as in girlfriends
a female romantic companion
every Jack must have his Gill
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in canyons
a narrow opening between hillsides or mountains that can be used for passage
a narrow gill in the Cumbrian Mountains of the Lake District
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in creeks
a natural body of running water smaller than a river
a narrow but surprisingly deep gill runs the length of the rocky gorge
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of gills
Scott Feinberg, HollywoodReporter, 28 Apr. 2026
Some have gills, some have lungs; some lay eggs, some don’t; some eat seaweed, some eat other fish.
—Elise Broach, New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2026
When chemicals from oil dissolve into the water column, water-breathing animals such as fish absorb them through their gills and corals absorb them directly through their tissues.
—Asuka Koda, CNN Money, 17 Apr. 2026
The clams shunt sulfur- and oxygen-rich water to bacteria that live inside the clams’ gills.
—David George Haskell, Big Think, 27 Mar. 2026
The water gets absorbed into their intestines, but the salt is transported from their blood to cells in the gills, which then push that salt back into the sea.
—Sara Kiley Watson, Popular Science, 18 Mar. 2026
Bigger, badder, ripped to the gills, literally or metaphorically, positive or not, the meaning is understood.
—Josh Gross, Daily News, 24 Feb. 2026
Since then, the hotel has seen everyone from Winston Churchill to Elton John pass through, and rooms are packed to the gills with antiques, tartans, and old photographs.
—Timothy Latterner, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Feb. 2026
Her nerves and inner paths twist into a lemniscate; her heart, gills, kidneys, osphradium, digestive organs rotate within her body from the left to the right side of her all-important foot.
—Literary Hub, 23 Feb. 2026
Noun
On April 16, the TV Academy in North Hollywood was packed to the gills for a screening of the season two finale — which looked particularly stunning on a big screen — followed by an impressive Q&A and reception with Thornton, Larter, Elliott, Moore, Randolph, Lofland and Chávez.
—Scott Feinberg, HollywoodReporter, 28 Apr. 2026
Some have gills, some have lungs; some lay eggs, some don’t; some eat seaweed, some eat other fish.
—Elise Broach, New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2026
When chemicals from oil dissolve into the water column, water-breathing animals such as fish absorb them through their gills and corals absorb them directly through their tissues.
—Asuka Koda, CNN Money, 17 Apr. 2026
The clams shunt sulfur- and oxygen-rich water to bacteria that live inside the clams’ gills.
—David George Haskell, Big Think, 27 Mar. 2026
The water gets absorbed into their intestines, but the salt is transported from their blood to cells in the gills, which then push that salt back into the sea.
—Sara Kiley Watson, Popular Science, 18 Mar. 2026
Bigger, badder, ripped to the gills, literally or metaphorically, positive or not, the meaning is understood.
—Josh Gross, Daily News, 24 Feb. 2026
Since then, the hotel has seen everyone from Winston Churchill to Elton John pass through, and rooms are packed to the gills with antiques, tartans, and old photographs.
—Timothy Latterner, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Feb. 2026
Her nerves and inner paths twist into a lemniscate; her heart, gills, kidneys, osphradium, digestive organs rotate within her body from the left to the right side of her all-important foot.
—Literary Hub, 23 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Gills.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gills. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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