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

medals

noun

plural of medal
as in decorations
a piece of metal given in honor of a special event, a person, or an achievement the display case held an impressive array of military medals from World War II

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 medals The country has won three World Cup medals but has never captured gold. — Jackson Thompson Outkick, FOXNews.com, 11 Sep. 2026 The 37-year-old is playing in her fourth World Cup and has helped Spain win medals in the previous three. — ABC News, 11 Sep. 2026 The winners will receive their medals at a ceremony on Monday evening at RH London, The Gallery in Mayfair. — Samantha Conti, Footwear News, 9 Sep. 2026 For a player with Rodman’s own medals, profile and career, the appeal of the label hits differently. — Amelie Claydon, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026 That was thanks in large part to his wife, Sandy, a retired nurse, who requested her husband’s military records through the Freedom of Information Act, which showed seven medals Wolfe, now 79, had earned but never received. — Mona Darwish, Oc Register, 5 Sep. 2026 Multiple attempts to pass congressional legislation rescinding the medals have failed, with neither Rounds nor any other member of the state’s congressional delegation signing on as sponsors or cosponsors. — Meghan O'Brien, States Newsroom, 3 Sep. 2026 Hernandez went on to compete and win multiple medals, sharing her spots on the medal podiums with the cisgender athletes who otherwise would have claimed them had Hernandez not been competing. — Kevin Rector, Los Angeles Times, 1 Sep. 2026 The four teams deserve medals, as several other pairs of top-10 teams that are the best in the counties aren’t playing each other this year. — Todd Holcomb, AJC.com, 28 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for medals
  1. decorations
  2. insignia
  3. trophies
  4. medallions
Noun
  • The board also entered into a three-year contract with Twinkle Lights Installation for nearly $49,000 to install and maintain Halloween and Christmas lights and decorations in Heritage Park behind Village Hall.
    — Michelle Mullins, Chicago Tribune, 10 Sep. 2026
  • Halloween decorations, jack-o-lantern sculptures and nostalgia will take over Lilly House with an interactive shadow show.
    — Domenica Bongiovanni, IndyStar, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of decorations
Noun
  • For Kathleen, the more manicured and pristine that set could be, the more things that could have Buddy’s insignia stamped on them and the more objects that could have faces staring out at Freddy (Delaney Quinn) and her friends, the better.
    — Sarah Shachat, IndieWire, 1 Sep. 2026
  • Then, in 2023, as NASA brought the worm out of retirement, the logo regained its place on the tail, and the insignia (meatball) was moved to the body under the cockpits.
    — Robert Pearlman, ArsTechnica, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of insignia
Noun
  • Margo’s Got Money Troubles, The Pitt, and Widow’s Bay all picked up hecka trophies.
    — Bethy Squires, Vulture, 7 Sep. 2026
  • Bad Bunny won his first career Emmy Award Saturday for his Super Bowl halftime show, which was awarded home seven trophies.
    — Andrew Dalton, Chicago Tribune, 6 Sep. 2026
Definition of trophies
Noun
  • Take cues from Celine and Dries Van Noten and look for long pendants featuring a constellation of medallions, letters, shells, horns, the like.
    — Andrea Zendejas, Vogue, 4 Sep. 2026
  • In August, Pandora expanded its Talisman collection to include zodiac medallions, articulated rings and foundational chain necklaces.
    — Hedy Phillips, PEOPLE, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of medallions

Browse Nearby Words

medallions
medals
meddle
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Medals.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/medals. Accessed 17 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 watershed

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

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

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

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

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

Popular in Wordplay

See More

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Words from the 'Odyssey'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 18
See More

Popular

See More

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary
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
funny guinea pig in glasses reading a book
Challenging Words You Should Know Vol 2 Words to the wise
See All