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

notoriety

noun

ˌnō-tə-ˈrī-ə-tē How to pronounce notoriety (audio)
Definition of notorietynext
1
as in celebrity
a person who is widely known and usually much talked about a television show featuring a rogues' gallery of notorieties from 20 years of overhyped scandals

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in fame
the fact or state of being known to the public a lawyer of notoriety for the huge awards he's won in medical malpractice cases

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 notoriety Steinem, who died at age 92, became a symbol of the second-wave of feminism through activism work after initially gaining notoriety as a journalist in the 1960s. — Megan Sauer, CNBC, 4 Sep. 2026 Maybe the success of Crocs and the prestige and notoriety and especially the crazy money had something to do with my nearly destroying myself. — George Boedecker Jr, Harpers Magazine, 1 Sep. 2026 The defense maintained that those accounts were exaggerated or fabricated for money and notoriety, pointing to the absence of physical evidence independently placing Davis in the Cadillac that night. — Spin Staff, SPIN, 1 Sep. 2026 Hansen, 66, is ready to ride the wave of notoriety the film is bound to generate. — Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for notoriety
Recent Examples of Synonyms for notoriety
  1. celebrity
  2. fame
  3. star
  4. renown
  5. personality
  6. reputation
Noun
  • Talent is genetic for some of these Dancing with the Stars celebrity contestants.
    — Francesca Gariano, PEOPLE, 15 Sep. 2026
  • View this post on Instagram Participants even include such celebrity magnets as Bad Bunny’s Asian clubstaurant Gekko (Brickell) coastal-Italian gem Casadonna (Edgewater) and fancy steakhouse Daniel’s (Coral Gables).
    — Madeleine Marr, Miami Herald, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of celebrity
Noun
  • But beyond the glory lies a turbulent story of fame, influence, and controversy that nearly destroyed him.
    — Payton Turkeltaub, Variety, 17 Sep. 2026
  • Firstman rose to fame during the pandemic through is viral satirical impression videos on Instagram.
    — Diana Lodderhose, Deadline, 17 Sep. 2026
Definition of fame
Noun
  • When Russians discovered karaoke, thousands of venues sprang up, from cheap sushi joints to lavish establishments where an orchestra and backup singers accompanied anyone willing to step onto the stage and, for a few minutes, feel like a star.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 Sep. 2026
  • Its star Matthew Rhys made history, winning two Leading categories in Comedy and Drama for Netflix’s The Beast in Me.
    — Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of star
Noun
  • Baldwin Lee came to photographic renown pretty late in life, mostly for his in-close-and-intense pictures of small-town Black Southerners made in the 1980s and collected in an epic monograph in 2022.
    — Baldwin Lee, Curbed, 10 Sep. 2026
  • Its innovative cutting-edge treatments, some found nowhere else, reaffirm the destination spa’s renown as one of the finest in the nation.
    — Robb Report Studio, Robb Report, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of renown
Noun
  • Know More West Virginia is a small state that’s also the home of bare-knuckled politics and big personalities.
    — Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 16 Sep. 2026
  • But his personality is shining through within the team environment.
    — Mitch Sherman, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of personality
Noun
  • Large Amounts of Coffee Coffee has a reputation for causing dehydration, but that’s not the whole story.
    — Sarah Jividen, Verywell Health, 17 Sep. 2026
  • The largest carriers already have reasons to stay compliant, including public reputation and legal liability.
    — John Kelly, CBS News, 17 Sep. 2026
Definition of reputation

Browse Nearby Words

notorieties
notoriety
notorious
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Notoriety.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/notoriety. Accessed 21 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 elegiac

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
crayons-in-a-circle
Guess the Color Quiz Questions that use the whole box of crayons.
See All