Thesaurus results for LANCES

lances 1 of 2

noun

plural of lance

as in spears

a weapon with a long straight handle and sharp head or blade the lance struck squarely on the knight's shield, knocking him from his horse

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lances

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of lance

as in stabs

to penetrate or hold (something) with a pointed object doctors used to lance infected sores, so that they could drain clean

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 lances

Noun

Snow cannons and lances are the visible part of the snowmaking network. — ABC News, 13 Aug. 2026 Bottom cleaners use lances to scrape biofoul off hulls. — David Goldman, CNN Money, 23 June 2026 Um dos lances mais bonitos da nossa história. — Stuart James, New York Times, 16 June 2026 Warhorses charge, lances down, crashing through the tilts as lances break on shields and men topple from their steeds. — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 26 Jan. 2026 Three or four decades ago, the newspaperman was appealingly raffish—at once a bum who drank too much and a knight-errant who charged unafraid at social injustice, succored the weak, and crossed lances with the powerful and arrogant. — David Wingrave, Harpers Magazine, 24 Oct. 2025 At a handful of locations, these spikes extended out to nearly a meter, looking more like lances than anything needed to ward off a close-in attack. — ArsTechnica, 28 Aug. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for lances

Noun

Roasting keeps the spears tender while adding light browning and a slightly crisp exterior for better texture and flavor.

— Katie Rosenhouse, Southern Living, 9 Sep. 2026
Marin’s diagonal shot dips at the last second and spears into the top corner of the net.

— Daniel Taylor, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026

Definition of spears

Verb

But before Bane can finish him off, Batman stabs a Batarang into a little knob on Bane’s wrist gauntlet, the one that controls his intake of Venom.

— Daniel Dockery, Vulture, 24 Aug. 2026
When Little Death stabs into their victim, there’s a geyser of blood, way more than could fit inside a human body.

— Sarah Shachat, IndieWire, 7 Aug. 2026

Definition of stabs

Noun

Humans have been throwing javelins for a few hundred thousand years, yet performance has largely plateaued.

— R. Alexander Bentley, The Conversation, 26 Feb. 2026
The Tofinu took refuge in the lagoons along the Bight of Benin, a core area of the slave trade, venturing forth in canoes with harpoons, javelins, and swords to fight off raiders from powerful nearby kingdoms.

— Laurent Dubois, The Atlantic, 6 Jan. 2026

Definition of javelins

Verb

That’s because when a snake bites and punctures the skin and transfers venom into the victim’s body, the venom attacks the skin, soft tissue and connective tissue beneath it.

— Karen Garcia, Los Angeles Times, 21 July 2026
If a foreign object punctures the tread or sidewall, your tire can deflate slowly or quickly, depending on the puncture.

— Jason Fogelson, AJC.com, 29 May 2026

Definition of punctures

Verb

Christmas tree pins have a tiered configuration that compresses rather than pierces the ground (a win for modern synthetic or Mondo tracks).

— Stacia Datskovska, Footwear News, 10 Sep. 2026
An ice sculpture of a heart includes a tube through the ice arrow that pierces the heart.

— Peter Larsen, Oc Register, 10 July 2026

Definition of pierces

Verb

Rather than immediately running toward his destination on the opposite side of the field, Jefferson jabs at the defender to create even more separation.

— Alec Lewis, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026
Vance, El-Sayed exchange jabs over spouse comments The dispute also took a personal turn as the vice president condemned El-Sayed for comments about second lady Usha Vance.

— Melina Khan, USA Today, 1 Sep. 2026

Definition of jabs

Verb

The eight top picks below span single hooks, double hooks, multi-hook racks, and one shelf-and-hook combination.

— Audrey Lee, Architectural Digest, 11 Sep. 2026
There finally seems to be a plan for the offensive line build, with the Giants investing Day 3 picks in players who aren’t rushed into the lineup.

— Dan Duggan, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of picks

Verb

In any case, the epilogue sticks the landing and allows audiences to leave the theater feeling riled up rather than hopeless.

— Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 9 Sep. 2026
The graphic below illustrates that Circati is not a centre-back who sticks a foot in too often, preferring to sit off and protect the space.

— Thom Harris, New York Times, 3 Sep. 2026

Definition of sticks

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“Lances.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lances. Accessed 15 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of lances

noun

verb

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