LIMITS Synonyms: 72 Similar and Opposite Words

limits 1 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of limit

as in restricts

to set bounds or an upper limit for limit the note to a few words

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in defines

to mark the limits of adjectives limit the meanings of nouns

Synonyms & Similar Words

limits

2 of 2

noun

plural of limit

as in limitations

a real or imaginary point beyond which a person or thing cannot go there was no limit to the number of challenges they faced

Synonyms & Similar Words

as in heights

the most extreme or advanced point those bratty kids have pushed my patience to the limit

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 limits

Verb

Cap concerns Shaikin wrote about a lockout expected this winter as Major League Baseball owners attempt to implement a salary cap, which limits the amount of money a team can spend on player salaries. — Andrew J. Campa, Los Angeles Times, 17 Oct. 2026 The hotel is situated in a floodway, which limits construction for safety purposes, so since 1993 the site’s various owners haven’t been able to build anew; renovating ad infinitum has proven to be just dandy though. — Rachel Tepper Paley, Bon Appetit Magazine, 15 Oct. 2026 According to the brand, the cream’s proprietary N|A3 technology limits the amount of stress cortisol in the skin while boosting its chemical well-being messengers. — Jenny Berg, Vogue, 14 Oct. 2026 For instance, Florida’s constitution limits annual increases in assessed homestead values to no more than 3%. — Chicago Tribune, 14 Oct. 2026 Folks in Europe can get the 900 in an A2-friendly configuration that limits its power output. — Abhimanyu Ghoshal, New Atlas, 14 Oct. 2026 The money would be exempt from the Taxpayer Bill of Rights (TABOR), which limits how much money the state can spend each year and refunds excess money to taxpayers. — Shaun Boyd, CBS News, 12 Oct. 2026 About 75% of Australia’s natural gas production is offshore, which limits growth. — Jordan Blum, Fortune, 10 Oct. 2026 Gerrymandering limits the size of any party’s majority, but Cook’s Erin Covey is now projecting that Democrats could flip a net of nine to 19 seats. — Mariana Alfaro, Washington Post, 9 Oct. 2026

Noun

Whether lawmakers accept those limits will help determine how much authority the federal government gains over advanced AI systems. — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 17 Oct. 2026 France, unlike the United States, places strict limits on campaign spending, but money still shapes the broader political ecosystem. — Nicholas Bequelin, Time, 16 Oct. 2026 The lawsuit marks the latest crackdown under the Better Online Ticket Sales Act, also known as the BOTS Act, which bans scalpers from circumventing ticket limits with technology. — Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 16 Oct. 2026 Connecticut, Maryland, Illinois and Washington also restrict cadmium in children’s jewelry, though limits and testing requirements vary by state. — Bilin Lin, Fortune, 16 Oct. 2026 Oil prices are set in global markets, and new California production would take months to develop; experts also cite the state’s aging fields, high production costs and refinery constraints as limits on how much additional supply could help. — Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026 The standard expiration limits do not apply to this document. — S.e. Jenkins, CBS News, 16 Oct. 2026 Production workloads can have higher limits paired with anomaly detection. — Pritam Debnath, Forbes.com, 16 Oct. 2026 That ruling established limits on government officials’ authority to restrict criticism during public meetings. — Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 16 Oct. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for limits

Verb

That legislation restricts diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives in public schools.

— Erin Jones, CBS News, 16 Oct. 2026
International students have also faced pressures, as the government restricts visa programs and increases costs significantly for others.

— Jaweed Kaleem, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of restricts

Verb

As the footprint expands across major creative capitals, both founders remain adamantly protective of the core intimacy that defines their mission.

— Arthur Zaczkiewicz, Footwear News, 13 Oct. 2026
Public signals guide questions, internal evidence tests assumptions, and a road map defines what execution requires.

— James Fratzke, Forbes.com, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of defines

Noun

None of it feels remotely tied to the zeitgeist, instead showing an artist galvanized by their own out-there proclivities and exhilarated by the limitations of whatever ramshackle gear might be lying around a home studio.

— Dash Lewis, Pitchfork, 15 Oct. 2026
Ukraine’s Armed Forces learned about the Starshield terminals’ speed limitations from SpaceX customer support after filing a complaint about operational issues, and SpaceX provided no prior warning, according to the source.

— Jessie Yeung, CNN Money, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of limitations

Noun

Michael Stambaugh looks through a clinometer, an eyepiece that uses triangulation to measure tree heights, vertical angles, and slope steepness.

— M. R. O’Connor, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026
Fit for a king Mai’s arrival in England coincided with a fad for Pacific cultures that had risen to new heights in 1773, when a blockbuster compilation of accounts of Pacific expeditions, which included Cook’s first voyage, was published.

— Saar Shahar, The Conversation, 12 Oct. 2026

Definition of heights

Verb

Places like Los Angeles and Oakland have high permit fees and strict zoning that often confines cans to industrial areas.

— Alexandra Harrell, Sourcing Journal, 9 Feb. 2026
In an industry that often confines its actors, especially women and especially Black women, Hall continues to carve a path defined by risk, depth and courage.

— Clayton Davis, Variety, 14 Nov. 2025

Definition of confines

Verb

Throughout the event, a guy bounds around, introducing the recordists, then crouching to cue their recordings on a laptop, his dark, longish hair under a black dad cap bearing the club’s name.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 5 Oct. 2026
With the sprightly energy of a schoolboy, Jean-Paul Doron bounds into an empty creek, his red suede shoes scraping pale rocks.

— Dominique Soguel, Christian Science Monitor, 14 Aug. 2026

Definition of bounds

Noun

In the meantime, the boundaries between art-making and performance were breaking down.

— Leslie Camhi, New Yorker, 16 Oct. 2026
Much of the theory also stems from Belbruno's work on permanent capture into the solar system and weak stability boundaries published in 2024 in the journal Celestial Mechanics and Dynamical Astronomy.

— Leonard David, Space.com, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of boundaries

Noun

Built in 1926, near the end of what many consider the heyday of the American carousel, the Griffith Park merry-go-round began its life in San Diego and was relocated to Los Angeles in the depths of the Great Depression in 1937.

— Todd Martens, Los Angeles Times, 12 Oct. 2026
One of Vicuña’s new paintings is Polvo del Sahara/ Saharan Desert Dust (2026), an underwater scene showing the light reflecting into the depths of the ocean, where a stone staircase leads to somewhere beyond the horizon.

— Maximilíano Durón, ARTnews.com, 12 Oct. 2026

Definition of depths

Browse Nearby Words

limitlessness

limits

limn

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Limits.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/limits. Accessed 19 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of limits

verb

noun

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

fervid

Popular in Grammar & Usage

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

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

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Popular in Wordplay

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

Did 'orange' the fruit or the color come first?

Popular

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

Games & Quizzes