outbreak

noun

ˈau̇t-ˌbrāk How to pronounce outbreak (audio)
Definition of outbreaknext
1
as in flurry
a sudden and usually temporary growth of activity there was an immediate outbreak of paper shuffling and a pretense of work when the supervisor passed through the room

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in revolt
open fighting against authority (as one's own government) the government quelled the outbreak with ruthless efficiency

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 outbreak The outbreak was jointly detected in both the DRC and neighboring Uganda. — Nimi Princewill, CNN Money, 6 Aug. 2026 No products have been linked to the other outbreaks, including one that has sickened 115 people. — CBS News, 6 Aug. 2026 The Ebola outbreak reached 3,874 cases, including 1,751 deaths as of Monday, according to the latest data published overnight by Congo’s Ministry of Health. — ABC News, 5 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for outbreak
Recent Examples of Synonyms for outbreak
  1. flurry
  2. revolt
  3. burst
  4. insurrection
  5. outburst
  6. uprising
  7. mutiny
  8. rebellion
Noun
  • After a bit of activity over the weekend, and a flurry of moves on trade deadline day, the Braves’ last 72 hours was quite pedestrian.
    — Chad Bishop, AJC.com, 4 Aug. 2026
  • Familiar names departed in a flurry of deals, leaving a clubhouse that suddenly looked much different.
    — Peter Chawaga, Forbes.com, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of flurry
Noun
  • Google DeepMind is struggling to retain its technical edge, keep hold of top researchers, and contain an employee revolt over its defense work.
    — Beatrice Nolan, Fortune, 10 Aug. 2026
  • And, at least for now, despite the threat of revolt, internal pressure within FIFA appears to have abated.
    — Aleks Klosok, CNN Money, 8 Aug. 2026
Definition of revolt
Noun
  • Protecting pilot vision A nuclear weapon produces an intense burst of thermal and visible light within fractions of a second after detonation.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 7 Aug. 2026
  • With juicy bursts of fresh fruit, the result is deliciously smooth, custardy, and bright.
    — Kimberly Holland, Southern Living, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of burst
Noun
  • As Port falls in with a group of conspirators preparing for the insurrection, the book takes on a hallucinatory, digressive quality, blurring the lines between life and death, reality and illusion.
    — The New Yorker, New Yorker, 3 Aug. 2026
  • Stephen Colbert’s award-winning Late Show was canceled in a move that many have labeled political appeasement, and the flagship evening newscast baselessly recast the January 6 insurrection as a partisan squabble.
    — Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of insurrection
Noun
  • The McKinney City Council voted late Wednesday night to approve a site plan for a new mosque after a marathon meeting marked by outbursts and hours of public comment.
    — Trevor Sochocki, CBS News, 5 Aug. 2026
  • His wife, Liz (Evan Rachel Wood), is a sneak preview of Debbie’s future, self-medicating with drugs, alcohol, and wrathful outbursts.
    — Judy Berman, Time, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of outburst
Noun
  • Also sentenced to death in the same case was Assad’s maternal cousin Atef Najib, who was convicted of overseeing a crackdown in the southern province of Daraa that led to the uprising and later the civil war.
    — CNN Money, CNN Money, 11 Aug. 2026
  • Also sentenced to death in the same case was Assad’s maternal cousin Atef Najib for leading the crackdown in the southern province of Daraa that led to the uprising and later the civil war.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of uprising
Noun
  • At the start of the summer, Infantino seemed untouchable but there is a mood of mutiny in the air.
    — Simon Hughes, New York Times, 1 Aug. 2026
  • For years, they have been stuck at sea with their leader, the great warrior king Odysseus (Matt Damon), trying to find a route home to Ithaca; hunger and desperation have spurred his fiery second-in-command, Eurylochus (Himesh Patel), toward mutiny.
    — Justin Chang, New Yorker, 17 July 2026
Definition of mutiny
Noun
  • The mythmaking rebellion of Tekena, first of her name, for the sake of a coward’s love was as recognizable to her descendants as their need to cross borders, both ethnic and geographic, in search of a happiness that wasn’t promised.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 6 Aug. 2026
  • The rebellion has been absorbed by the very system it was built to replace.
    — Josh Brown,Sean Russo, CNBC, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of rebellion

Browse Nearby Words

outbraving
outbreak
outbreaks
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Cite this Entry

“Outbreak.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/outbreak. Accessed 11 Aug. 2026.

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