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

Even with a pair of bogeys on the final four holes, Fleetwood did enough Saturday — a 1-under 69, his third round under par this week — and was five shots behind Sam Burns. — ABC News, 18 July 2026

His 197 strokes over the closing 54 holes a year ago are tied for the second-fewest in the history of the Open. — Justin Ray, New York Times, 18 July 2026

When his funeral conflicts with Lonnie’s tee time, The Hawk texts in his eulogy between holes. — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 16 July 2026

Wallabies, which typically live in forested areas, are inclined to find their shade, while the kangaroos, hailing from more desert-like areas, tend to dig holes in the dirt and lie down. — Dewayne Bevil, The Orlando Sentinel, 16 July 2026

Hand sewn button holes, or ruffles made of old men’s shirts were all beautiful ways to put some real beauty into otherwise practical clothes. — Caroline Reilly, Forbes.com, 11 July 2026

Functionally, Family Day can do a lot to confirm a relationship’s authenticity or to poke holes. — Kathleen Walsh, Vulture, 10 July 2026

Look for indicators like silk webbing, tunnels on fabrics, and small holes in natural fibers. — Nafeesah Allen, Better Homes & Gardens, 10 July 2026

Then poke two holes near the lid and insert twine or string to hang it around your yard or garden. — Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, The Spruce, 10 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