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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 Clinical trials are ongoing to find a licensed vaccine for the current outbreak, caused by the Bundibugyo virus, which has no licensed vaccine or treatment. — Arkansas Online, 20 Sep. 2026 The security agency on Thursday blamed the deaths on a possible disease outbreak. — ABC News, 20 Sep. 2026 Austin Abrams takes the lead in the gory reboot co-written by Cregger and Shay Hatten as a medical courier who must contend with a zombie outbreak while making a delivery to Raccoon City General Hospital. — Payton Turkeltaub, Variety, 19 Sep. 2026 With outbreaks continuing in Pennsylvania and other places, this is even more important. — Tom Ignudo, CBS News, 19 Sep. 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
  • The announcements underscore Alibaba's growing push into the machinery behind the AI boom, amid a flurry of AI infrastructure investments by its Western tech peers as the race for computing power intensifies.
    — Jenny Lee,Evelyn Cheng, CNBC, 22 Sep. 2026
  • The two Democrats have exchanged a flurry of critiques throughout the campaign.
    — Mathew Miranda, Sacbee.com, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of flurry
Noun
  • Of these three films, The Uprising is admittedly the least heist-explicit; Paul Greengrass’s shaky cam mostly follows marching mobs lambasting the king and furious revolts against soldiers and tax collectors.
    — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 17 Sep. 2026
  • Advertisement By midsummer, the revolt reached its breaking point.
    — JP Mangalindan, Time, 11 Sep. 2026
Definition of revolt
Noun
  • Rollins made a fantastic outside cut and showed elite burst on the play.
    — Buddy Collings, The Orlando Sentinel, 18 Sep. 2026
  • The club music that accompanies Claire’s bodybuilder retinue is funny the first time; less so on subsequent bursts.
    — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of burst
Noun
  • Amendment is also a constitution’s mechanism for the prevention of insurrection.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 Sep. 2026
  • 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
Definition of insurrection
Noun
  • But her mental instability was becoming increasingly apparent, leading to outbursts at work and home.
    — Hadley Hall Meares, Vanity Fair, 21 Sep. 2026
  • The Bears’ historic 59-point Week 1 outburst means the public is likely to pour money into the over, so this is a great spot to zig when the betting public zags.
    — Dan Zaksheske OutKick, FOXNews.com, 17 Sep. 2026
Definition of outburst
Noun
  • There were, of course, more people protesting than in 1848, the first modern wave of uprisings, known as the Springtime of the Peoples.
    — Rachel Nolan, The New York Review of Books, 19 Sep. 2026
  • The uprising also brought people working in different movements closer together.
    — Théoden Janes, Charlotte Observer, 17 Sep. 2026
Definition of uprising
Noun
  • Its leader, Sergei Mironov, 73, once gained headlines by posing with a symbol of brutality — a sledgehammer given to him by Yevgeny Prigozhin, the late Wagner mercenary leader shortly before his failed 2023 mutiny.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 17 Sep. 2026
  • Step aboard the Grampus, a whaleship gone adrift after a storm, rations running out and a violent mutiny, and learn what happened to its ghost whalers.
    — Staff Report, Hartford Courant, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of mutiny
Noun
  • It’s also brilliantly written as a futile, pathetic rebellion by men with zero agency or purpose in their own lives.
    — Jim Hemphill, IndieWire, 17 Sep. 2026
  • In Fernández’s version, Antíkona’s insubordination inspires a peoples’ rebellion and brings an end to Klion’s rule due to his inability to treat citizens with common decency.
    — Carlos De Loera, Los Angeles Times, 17 Sep. 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 25 Sep. 2026.

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