as in idioms
a sequence of words having a specific meaning
kids drawing literal representations of the phrase "to rain cats and dogs"
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
as in words
to convey in appropriate or telling terms
he had trouble thinking of how to phrase his question for the visiting dignitary
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of phrases
Sally Kuzemchak, Parents, 7 Mar. 2026
Fans have made posts using the game’s font to write comical phrases.
—Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 6 Mar. 2026
Some ignited fireworks and others spoke from a bullhorn or spray-painted anti-ICE phrases on vehicles and an unoccupied guard booth.
—Emerson Clarridge
updated March 6, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 6 Mar. 2026
These phrases often signal values rather than verifiable environmental outcomes.
—Kansas City Star, 5 Mar. 2026
These phrases sound meaningful.
—Miami Herald, 5 Mar. 2026
Frequent flyers have likely heard crew say specific words to indicate a message, but certain phrases are considered more serious than others.
—Lydia Mansel, Travel + Leisure, 3 Mar. 2026
While the first and last phrases are typewritten, fuego is handpainted in much larger, bright-red capital letters.
—Daniel R. Quiles, Artforum, 1 Mar. 2026
The quilt Straughter is making for Woman Made Gallery includes more than 142 phrases inspired by gallery contributors.
—Susan Degrane, Chicago Tribune, 28 Feb. 2026
Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 10 Oct. 2025
In essence, the Iowa and West Virginia sports cases ask the court to rule whether a transgender girl – a person assigned male at birth who has transitioned to align with their identity as a girl or woman, as the AP Stylebook phrases it – is a girl or a boy.
—Morgan Marietta, The Conversation, 2 Oct. 2025
Extract phrases from calls, build frameworks from notes, convert DMs to posts.
—Jodie Cook, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2025
Noun
Here are nine phrases that should be off-limits during mealtime.
—Sally Kuzemchak, Parents, 7 Mar. 2026
Fans have made posts using the game’s font to write comical phrases.
—Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 6 Mar. 2026
Some ignited fireworks and others spoke from a bullhorn or spray-painted anti-ICE phrases on vehicles and an unoccupied guard booth.
—Emerson Clarridge
updated March 6, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 6 Mar. 2026
These phrases often signal values rather than verifiable environmental outcomes.
—Kansas City Star, 5 Mar. 2026
These phrases sound meaningful.
—Miami Herald, 5 Mar. 2026
Frequent flyers have likely heard crew say specific words to indicate a message, but certain phrases are considered more serious than others.
—Lydia Mansel, Travel + Leisure, 3 Mar. 2026
While the first and last phrases are typewritten, fuego is handpainted in much larger, bright-red capital letters.
—Daniel R. Quiles, Artforum, 1 Mar. 2026
The quilt Straughter is making for Woman Made Gallery includes more than 142 phrases inspired by gallery contributors.
—Susan Degrane, Chicago Tribune, 28 Feb. 2026
Verb
To this day, people come up to him and quote phrases his character used to utter.
—Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 10 Oct. 2025
In essence, the Iowa and West Virginia sports cases ask the court to rule whether a transgender girl – a person assigned male at birth who has transitioned to align with their identity as a girl or woman, as the AP Stylebook phrases it – is a girl or a boy.
—Morgan Marietta, The Conversation, 2 Oct. 2025
Extract phrases from calls, build frameworks from notes, convert DMs to posts.
—Jodie Cook, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for phrases
Noun
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Those books introduced me to a vision of American teenage life and taught me the rhythms and idioms of American English, nuances that would later replace my Britishisms and shape my career as a journalist.—
Faith Karimi,
CNN Money,
17 Feb. 2026
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Like fellow North Carolinians Wednesday and MJ Lenderman—local stars descended from the likes of Lucinda Williams and Drive-By Truckers—Dowdy carves complex new visions into the idioms of his upbringing.—
Jenn Pelly,
Time,
4 Dec. 2025
Verb
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State media says the ship is designed to handle various weapons systems, including antiair and anti-naval weapons, as well as nuclear-capable ballistic and cruise missiles.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
6 Mar. 2026
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The simple strategy that spawned the Aflac duck The experiences that a long-serving CEO accumulates bring wisdom, Amos says.—
Andrew Edgecliffe-Johnson,
semafor.com,
6 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Williams says the same approach can help caregivers respond more compassionately when someone with dementia expresses a mistaken belief, confusing idea, or hallucination.—
Brian Unger,
CBS News,
5 Mar. 2026
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When a user expresses suicidal intent, ChatGPT is supposed to refer users to 988, the suicide and crisis hotline.—
Kaan Ozcan,
NBC news,
3 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Phrases.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/phrases. Accessed 10 Mar. 2026.
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