pads 1 of 3

Definition of padsnext
plural of pad
1
as in notebooks
a number of sheets of writing paper glued together at one edge the waitress keeps a pad in the pocket of her apron to write down orders

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
3
as in buffers
something that serves as a protective barrier a pad on the chair to keep it from getting scratched

Synonyms & Similar Words

4

pads

2 of 3

verb (1)

present tense third-person singular of pad

pads

3 of 3

verb (2)

present tense third-person singular of pad

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 pads
Noun
The first week of spring practice has come and gone for coach Tim Albin and the Charlotte 49ers, who put on pads for the first time Saturday morning. Hunter Bailey, Charlotte Observer, 30 Mar. 2026 Sleeping bags were permitted, but not pillows or pads. Charles Bethea, New Yorker, 30 Mar. 2026 Minnesota opened its third session of the spring, and first in pads, to reporters and high school coaches. Andy Greder, Twin Cities, 29 Mar. 2026 Schaefer halved New Jersey's lead less than two minutes later on a breakaway, slipping a wrist shot between Markstrom's pads. CBS News, 27 Mar. 2026 The pads have come on as the Bulldogs ramp up intensity. Connor Riley, AJC.com, 27 Mar. 2026 Annual Bring Your Own Big Wheel Ride Snap on your helmet and protective pads, and drag your (plastic models preferred) Big Wheel (or similar) trike up a hill. Anne Schrager, San Francisco Chronicle, 27 Mar. 2026 To combat this, check for flimsy frames, loose hinges, or weak nose pads. Katie Decker-Jacoby, StyleCaster, 26 Mar. 2026 After a later starting date than usual, the Kansas Jayhawks football team held its first spring practice in pads on Thursday. Shreyas Laddha, Kansas City Star, 26 Mar. 2026
Verb
Adding the killer’s voice just pads an already too-long book. Maren Longbella, Boston Herald, 19 Oct. 2025 Not to say there aren’t some clunkers, most notably a jokey take-me-out-to-the-ballgame baseball number that pads the second act, but the Flaherty-Ahrens score was and is Ragtime‘s signature achievement. Greg Evans, Deadline, 16 Oct. 2025 The exchange is indicative of this odd, frustrating, occasionally intriguing project, which pads out scarce but real nuggets of insight with leading questions and endless clips. Alison Herman, Variety, 10 Sep. 2025 Stanfield is the second new face named this month, after French actor Paul Kircher, as Anderson pads out the ranks of his men’s ambassadors following a rash of appointments on the women’s side. Joelle Diderich, Footwear News, 3 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pads
Noun
  • The best smart notebooks This smart notebook fits in a pocket, has 48 reusable pages and comes with the Pilot Frixion pen required for note-taking.
    BestReviews, Chicago Tribune, 14 Aug. 2025
  • Lunch boxes, markers, notebooks and notebook filler paper.
    Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 6 Aug. 2025
Noun
  • For families Little children are catered to with cots, high chairs, roll-away beds, family swimming time in the pool, and the guest relations team offers movie nights for children in the room, soft toys, games and baby-sitting.
    Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 5 Apr. 2026
  • This mattress size is typically used for children’s beds and bunk beds.
    Sharon Brandwein, USA Today, 4 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • Asian economies, which take the vast majority of the crude and LNG that passes through the Strait of Hormuz, were the first to reach for green buffers after the US and Israel began striking Iran.
    Andy Browne, semafor.com, 31 Mar. 2026
  • Limited Financial Buffers The survey also sheds light on how limited many households’ financial buffers are.
    Aliss Higham, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Mar. 2026
Noun
  • The rooms Properties range from traditional two-story, three-bedroom villas with shingle roofs to modern hilltop residences that wouldn’t be out of place in Beverly Hills.
    Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 2 Apr. 2026
  • The 87-year-old brick building, crowned with a cupola, lacks the electrical infrastructure and air filtration system required in modern labs, and scientists there have been contending with leaking roofs and mold.
    Angela Eichhorst, Hartford Courant, 2 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • Later that month, Tarrant County deputies searched Laura's home and seized her cell phone, two tablets, two laptops, and medical supplies and medications prescribed to her son.
    Amelia Mugavero, CBS News, 1 Apr. 2026
  • On the other end of the spectrum, tablets for the worksite have become popular options in the last decade or so.
    K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 31 Mar. 2026
Noun
  • In an adjacent room is a lounge space with emerald panels, oak bookshelves and velvet couches.
    Paige Reddinger, Robb Report, 3 Apr. 2026
  • For months, Robber Robber crashed on the couches of friends and fellow artists, including Greg Freeman and Lily Seabird, before eventually climbing into an unused attic for temporary shelter.
    Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 3 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • Some protesters wearing shields and gas masks on the other side of a fence at the federal complex picked up the canisters and tossed them back at police.
    City News Service, Daily News, 29 Mar. 2026
  • Opening Day festivities in Cincinnati ended with a series of disturbances Thursday evening that prompted police armed with nonlethal shotguns, pepper spray and riot shields to shut down The Banks and send hundreds of revelers home early.
    David Ferrara, Cincinnati Enquirer, 27 Mar. 2026
Noun
  • The rooms Properties range from traditional two-story, three-bedroom villas with shingle roofs to modern hilltop residences that wouldn’t be out of place in Beverly Hills.
    Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 2 Apr. 2026
  • Johnson’s ordinance also permitted them by right in areas across the city zoned for multiunit residences and some business and commercial districts.
    Jake Sheridan, Chicago Tribune, 2 Apr. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Pads.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pads. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.

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