1
as in probable
having a high chance of occurring
if you don't graduate from high school, your likely fate is a low-paying job
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in promising
having qualities which inspire hope
this looks like a likely spot for good trout fishing
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in plausible
worthy of being accepted as true or reasonable
we didn't find her excuse a very likely story
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in pretty
very pleasing to look at
a likely gal such as yourself should have no trouble getting a date
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in probably
by reasonable assumption
the picnic will likely be cancelled if the storm continues
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of likely
Elizabeth Shackelford, Chicago Tribune, 27 June 2025
Gennadiy Goldberg, head of U.S. rates strategy at TD Securities, thinks prices are likely to rise as tariffs gradually push up import costs in the second half of the year.
—Megan Cerullo, CBS News, 27 June 2025
Betsy Cribb Watson, Southern Living, 28 June 2025
The second narrative thread, while less dramatic, is arguably more substantial -- and likely owes more to Clinton than to Patterson.
—Arkansas Online, 28 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for likely
Adjective
Contrary to Trump’s assertions, none of this is likely to deter Iran from seeking nuclear weapons.
—Elizabeth Shackelford, Chicago Tribune, 27 June 2025
Gennadiy Goldberg, head of U.S. rates strategy at TD Securities, thinks prices are likely to rise as tariffs gradually push up import costs in the second half of the year.
—Megan Cerullo, CBS News, 27 June 2025
Adverb
Perhaps nastiest of all, though, are the human bacteria likely clinging to your seemingly new clothes.
—Betsy Cribb Watson, Southern Living, 28 June 2025
The second narrative thread, while less dramatic, is arguably more substantial -- and likely owes more to Clinton than to Patterson.
—Arkansas Online, 28 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for likely
Recent Examples of Synonyms for likely
Adjective
-
For his next act, Bill Zito tries something else no one thought possible, financially practical or any-which-way probable.—
Dave Hyde,
Sun Sentinel,
19 June 2025
-
The March flight failed in similar fashion, but SpaceX's investigators determined the most probable root cause was a hardware failure in one of the ship's engines, a different failure mode than two months before.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
19 June 2025
Adjective
-
Sacramento has recently eliminated parking minimums and density caps citywide to promote new housing development, a promising approach to address housing scarcity.—
Mahdi E Diab,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
25 June 2025
-
The tech giant’s big-budget racing drama, starring Brad Pitt as a Formula One driver who is coerced out of retirement to coach a slick rookie (Damson Idris), is targeting a promising $50 million to $60 million in its debut.—
Rebecca Rubin,
Variety,
25 June 2025
Adjective
-
That seems like a plausible outcome, but unpredictability is one of Trump’s hallmarks.—
Kevin Stankiewicz,
CNBC,
29 June 2025
-
Some of his claims, while plausible, would require independent verification.—
Antonio Maria Delgado,
Miami Herald,
25 June 2025
Adjective
-
Candice took us to the west, the prettier side of the compound, where the maze lay, and the gardens and pond.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
24 June 2025
-
This experience showed me that luxury brands don't return as clients for pretty things alone.—
Kristina Fitzpatrick,
Forbes.com,
20 June 2025
Adverb
-
Finland alone could probably defeat Russia in such a fight if backed by security guarantees from at least one of its nuclear-armed allies, France or the United Kingdom.—
KORI SCHAKE,
Foreign Affairs,
24 June 2025
-
The around 30% of applicants that were probably fake in 2024 represent about 85% of fraudulent attempts, according to Chris Ferguson, the executive vice chancellor of finance and strategic initiatives, who spoke at last month’s Board of Governors meeting.—
Kaitlyn Huamani,
Los Angeles Times,
24 June 2025
Adjective
-
Because there was such little evidence, state police said further forensic testing was not possible.—
Justin Muszynski,
Hartford Courant,
22 June 2025
-
Much of this equipment, Weinreb notes, is at the cutting edge of the field, allowing imaging of the retina and other eye structures that was not possible not long ago.—
Paul Sisson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
22 June 2025
Adjective
-
The Royals are betting Cruz’s future remains bright.—
Jaylon Thompson,
Kansas City Star,
26 June 2025
-
After all, when the sun is so bright and the water so warm, who would ever want the summer to end?—
Erik Morse,
Vogue,
26 June 2025
Adjective
-
Designed in the right way, even modest short-term and long-term adjustments can maintain credible deterrence against both China and Russia at reasonable cost.—
VIPIN NARANG,
Foreign Affairs,
24 June 2025
-
Web crawlers that feed LLMs are increasingly pulling from non-traditional platforms to find fresh, credible content.—
Pawel Rzeszucinski,
Forbes.com,
24 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Likely.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/likely. Accessed 4 Jul. 2025.
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