Synonyms of holes

holes 1 of 2

noun

plural of hole

1

as in apertures

a place in a surface allowing passage into or through a thing

line up the pegs on section A with the holes in section B and press the two together

Synonyms & Similar Words

• apertures
• openings
• crevices
• spaces
• slits
• orifices
• perforations
• cracks
• fissures
• slots
• loopholes
• tears
• punches
• gashes
• pores
• clefts
• vents
• punctures
• rifts
• notches
• outlets
• crannies
• mouths
• ruptures
• inlets
• slashes
• pinholes
• cuts
• splits
• chinks
• rents
• entrances
• breaches
• potholes
• intakes
• exits
• breaks
• airholes
• buttonholes
• keyholes
• knotholes
• peepholes
• wormholes
• pinpricks
• armholes

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• patches
• seals
• plugs
• fillers
• fillings
• barriers
• obstacles
• obstructions
• fills
• stoppers
• blockages

2

as in pits

a sunken area forming a separate space

dig a hole big enough to plant the tree

Synonyms & Similar Words

• pits
• dents
• cavities
• ditches
• furrows
• trenches
• valleys
• hollows
• caverns
• indentations
• depressions
• caves
• pockets
• recesses
• alcoves
• basins
• bowls
• impressions
• craters
• concavities
• grooves
• burrows
• openings
• dimples
• dints
• excavations
• gutters
• sockets
• indentures
• troughs
• imprints
• clefts
• voids
• gouges
• wells
• nooks
• niches
• potholes
• boreholes
• sinkholes
• water holes
• notches
• abysses
• vacuums
• alveoli
• chasms
• postholes
• chuckholes
• vacuities
• wallows
• gulfs

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• projections
• protrusions
• protuberances
• bulges
• hills
• mounds
• tumors
• convexities
• rises
• cambers
• bumps
• juts
• humps
• swellings
• lumps
• pimples
• bunches
• swells

3

as in predicaments

a difficult, puzzling, or embarrassing situation from which there is no easy escape

Bill dug himself into a hole by promising to be in two places at the same time

Synonyms & Similar Words

• predicaments
• dilemmas
• pickles
• corners
• swamps
• binds
• jams
• rabbit holes
• boxes
• spots
• difficulties
• fixes
• impasses
• quagmires
• mires
• kettles of fish
• rattraps
• sticky wickets
• crises
• nodes
• jackpots
• plights
• hot waters
• troubles
• soups
• straits
• catch-22's
• scrapes
• pinches
• quandaries
• logjams
• emergencies
• deadlocks
• exigencies
• clutches
• crossroads
• standstills
• junctures
• stalemates
• halts

4

as in dumps

a dirty or messy place

when people see my room, they often ask, "How can you live in this hole?"

Synonyms & Similar Words

• dumps
• sties
• messes
• pigsties
• pigpens
• hellholes
• shambles
• chaoses
• disorganizations
• disorders
• disarrays
• hells
• snake pits
• musses
• disarrangements
• havoc
• litters
• jumbles
• confusions
• clutters
• muddles
• mare's nests
• mishmashes
• welters

5

as in gaps

an open space in a barrier (as a wall or hedge)

found a hole in the chain-link fence big enough to squeeze through

Synonyms & Similar Words

• gaps
• crevices
• fissures
• openings
• voids
• rifts
• cracks
• slits
• intervals
• discontinuities
• interstices
• rents
• breaches
• breaks
• slots
• cavities
• separations
• clefts
• pores
• apertures
• fractures
• crannies
• hiatuses
• orifices
• notches
• interspaces
• splits
• gulfs
• chasms
• chinks
• ruptures
• gapes
• abysses
• severances

6

as in nests

the shelter or resting place of a wild animal

watched the snake slither into its hole

Synonyms & Similar Words

• nests
• burrows
• lairs
• houses
• dens
• lodges
• territories

holes

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of hole

as in drills

to make a hole or series of holes in

holed the target with a round of shots

Synonyms & Similar Words

• drills
• pierces
• punches
• punctures
• pokes
• bores
• perforates
• riddles
• taps
• cuts
• penetrates
• pricks
• slits
• grooves
• breaks
• hollows
• splits
• broaches
• gouges
• notches
• excavates
• slashes
• burrows (into)
• ruptures
• prickles
• rends
• gashes

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• fills
• plugs
• seals
• patches

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of holes

Noun

Hossler was leading until a 30-minute delay because of storms, and returned to three-putt from 30 feet for bogey on the par-3 16th hole, ending his streak of 31 holes without a bogey. — ABC News, 8 Aug. 2026

Eagle has filed permit applications for a planned pre-feasibility drilling campaign that includes 47 drill holes covering roughly 27,000 feet. — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 7 Aug. 2026

These ⅛-inch wide holes are left behind when adult borers emerge after winter. — Lauren Landers, Better Homes & Gardens, 7 Aug. 2026

The apartment's storm door was broken, and multiple bullet holes were seen around the entrance, deputies said. — Paula Wethington, CBS News, 6 Aug. 2026

Slowly pour mixture evenly over Cake; smooth into an even layer, pressing pudding into holes. — Erin Merhar, Southern Living, 2 Aug. 2026

Back in April, roaches outnumbered the multiple holes in the kitchen walls and the handwashing was poor. — David J. Neal july 31, Miami Herald, 31 July 2026

We were probably doomed to have a good portion of the population poking whatever holes there were to find in James’ decision. — Dan Woike, New York Times, 31 July 2026

Designed by Carlton/Marshall Golf Design and Mark White, the course features holes from 40 to 105 yards, offering a fun, challenging short-game experience. — Erik Matuszewski, Forbes.com, 31 July 2026

Verb

Upgrade a Laundry Room Vent holes in a laundry room might call to mind a traditional airing cupboard, but perhaps counterintuitively, that term actually refers to a heated cupboard for keeping towels dry rather than one in which air freely circulates. — Monika Biegler Eyers, Better Homes & Gardens, 22 June 2026

Caulk holes around plumbing and sewer lines where roaches are likely to enter. — Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 4 June 2026

The flight attendants then attempted to solve the problem by shoving napkins inside the ceiling holes. — Colson Thayer, PEOPLE, 2 May 2026

Mirroring the 3-star wig cap structure, this wig featured three combs (left-side, right-side, nape), a drawstring, wig band insertion holes, and a 13×4 lace. — Noel Cymone Walker, StyleCaster, 1 Apr. 2026

The penetration holes indicate that the internal facility is likely bombed out, destroying anything that was inside. — CBS News, 12 Mar. 2026

How to Limit Attraction Sealing unwanted tiny cracks, gaps in doors or windows, or utility lines, and holes around the home is one of the best ways to prevent ants from gaining access in the first place. — Rae Ford, Martha Stewart, 11 Mar. 2026

But some backpacks are better for travel than others, perhaps designed with isolated shoe compartments, holes to feed your phone charging cable through, jewelry pouches, and special materials that simply wipe clean after picking up germs from public floors. — Olivia Young, Travel + Leisure, 8 Mar. 2026

The San Francisco 49ers head into free agency with roughly $38 million in salary-cap space — 11th most in the NFL — and holes all over their roster. — Matt Barrows, New York Times, 6 Mar. 2026