1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

indoctrinates

verb

present tense third-person singular of indoctrinate
as in teaches
to cause to acquire knowledge or skill in some field indoctrinated children in proper safety procedures

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

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 indoctrinates Poison indoctrinates our youth in the classroom and is reinforced by the divisive rhetoric constantly spewed forth in so much of the media. — Brooke L. Rollins, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for indoctrinates
  1. teaches
  2. educates
Verb
  • But Pavese understood that the only lesson tragedy really teaches is that there is no end to suffering.
    — Max Norman, Harpers Magazine, 22 Sep. 2026
  • Public discourse teaches children which differences are treated as ordinary, which are treated as suspect and who is allowed to belong without having to explain themselves.
    — Anahi Collado, The Conversation, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of teaches
Verb
  • Eton College, located in the English county of Berkshire a stone’s throw from Windsor Castle, educates boys aged 13 to 18 and accepts around 270 students per academic year.
    — Lauren Said-Moorhouse, CNN Money, 8 Sep. 2026
  • Mary is the executive director of the Berry Center, a nonprofit that educates local communities about sustainable agriculture.
    — Courier Journal staff, Louisville Courier Journal, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of educates

Browse Nearby Words

indoctrinated
indoctrinates
indoctrinating
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Indoctrinates.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/indoctrinates. Accessed 30 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of epistemic

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of the words cracker fly and sale arranged in a triangle with the word fire in the middle
Triple Play Quiz Find the word that pairs with each of the three g...
See All