1
as in pours
to give readily and in large quantities
doting parents lavishing lots of attention on their children
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in spends
to use up carelessly
a great actor who lavished his talent in lousy movies
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of lavishes
When Ray lavishes attention on another biker’s pet pillion, Kevin (Jake Shears of the Scissor Sisters), Colin sulks until his master unzips his trousers and gives him a treat.
—
Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 5 Feb. 2026
Majumdar lavishes her characters with careful attention, and so the reader comes to regard their most troubling actions as justified, if not inevitable.
—Tope Folarin, The Atlantic, 8 Nov. 2025
An ancillary of the brand’s best-selling, ambery-woody eau, each aluminum tube contains a quick-absorbing lotion that lavishes skin with moisture, keeping hands feeling comfortable and cuticles softened with its moisturizing blend of avocado oil, shea butter, plus green tea and chamomile extracts.
—Sophia Panych, Allure, 16 Sep. 2025
Branagh lavishes close-ups on his actors and gives them standout moments in his screenplay, as when Caitriona Balfe, as Ma, goes into a long, impassioned speech about why the family mustn’t leave Belfast.
—Mick Lasalle, San Francisco Chronicle, 8 Nov. 2021
Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 5 Feb. 2026
Majumdar lavishes her characters with careful attention, and so the reader comes to regard their most troubling actions as justified, if not inevitable.
—Tope Folarin, The Atlantic, 8 Nov. 2025
An ancillary of the brand’s best-selling, ambery-woody eau, each aluminum tube contains a quick-absorbing lotion that lavishes skin with moisture, keeping hands feeling comfortable and cuticles softened with its moisturizing blend of avocado oil, shea butter, plus green tea and chamomile extracts.
—Sophia Panych, Allure, 16 Sep. 2025
Branagh lavishes close-ups on his actors and gives them standout moments in his screenplay, as when Caitriona Balfe, as Ma, goes into a long, impassioned speech about why the family mustn’t leave Belfast.
—Mick Lasalle, San Francisco Chronicle, 8 Nov. 2021
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lavishes
Verb
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An endless stream of trucks pours in before sunrise, feeding a project where thousands of workers move through the site in hardhats and neon vests.—
Sharon Goldman,
Fortune,
26 Mar. 2026
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Everything pours from Rocky Horror and Hair and Jesus Christ Superstar, right?—
Joe Lynch,
Billboard,
24 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Marty is self-absorbed, forgetful, doesn’t much like people and spends hours online looking for advice about how to be a handyman.—
Mary Ann Grossmann,
Twin Cities,
28 Mar. 2026
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The first two will be built in Finland while the company spends between $700 million to $1 billion to renovate the shipyards in the ports of Galveston and Port Arthur, Texas.—
Lori Ann LaRocco,
CNBC,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The Deb drama is far from over, as the film's director and costar Rebel Wilson heaps new allegations onto the already sizable legal pile.—
Ryan Coleman,
Entertainment Weekly,
24 Nov. 2025
Verb
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One scholarly paper found that the typical retiree who claims before 70 loses $182,370 in potential Social Security income.—
Daniel de Visé,
USA Today,
28 Mar. 2026
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Access to the clinics will be limited to anyone who loses coverage as a result of new federal rules for Medicaid eligibility, set to take effect next January.—
Lucas Robinson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
26 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Lavishes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lavishes. Accessed 2 Apr. 2026.
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