PILES Synonyms: 260 Similar and Opposite Words

piles 1 of 3

noun (1)

plural of pile

as in stacks

a quantity of things thrown or stacked on one another a large pile of newspapers that needed to be disposed of

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

as in loads

a considerable amount a job that paid piles of money

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

piles

2 of 3

noun (2)

plural of pile

as in furs

a soft airy substance or covering the lush pile of the carpeting

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as in wools

the hairy covering of a mammal especially when fine, soft, and thick a dog with such a dense pile that he never minded the cold

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piles

3 of 3

verb

present tense third-person singular of pile

as in heaps

to lay or throw on top of one another piled all the clothes on the chair before putting them away

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

unpiles

as in huddles

to gather into a closely packed group the kids piled into the car

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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 piles

Noun

The Town of Munster has enlisted help in getting residents dug out of the seemingly endless piles of debris from the August 11 derecho. — Michelle L. Quinn, Chicago Tribune, 20 Aug. 2026 But her frustration piles up as her efforts to track the package down repeatedly fail. — Keith Phipps, Vulture, 19 Aug. 2026 Keep bushes trimmed and minimize piles of leaves, lumber, rocks, and other debris, particularly around patios, play areas, and other places where your family spends time. — Rachel Silva, Martha Stewart, 19 Aug. 2026 Video of the scene showed a trailer on its side and massive piles of squid on the road. — ABC News, 19 Aug. 2026 The bakery piles the ice shavings into a nearly impossibly tall vertical cone, soaked with a syrup in a variety of fruit flavors, including Tiger’s Blood, a mixture of strawberry, watermelon and a dash of coconut. — Anne Ewbank, Sacbee.com, 19 Aug. 2026 Furious at seeing piles of dead bodies, Wolverine unlocks a rage ability where his devastating attacks do even more damage. — Jordan Moreau, Variety, 13 Aug. 2026 The system demanded piles of paper to ensure the never-ending influx of goods contained numbers that corresponded correctly, that actually checked out. — Michael Ashley, Forbes.com, 12 Aug. 2026 The 5,398 officially noted burial objects included ceremonial figurines, chariots, pieces of jewelry and artwork, and even piles of food. — Popular Science Team, Popular Science, 12 Aug. 2026

Verb

Once a week, Hall piles his three kids in the car, drives five minutes to Costco and turns into the second row of the parking lot. — Jessica Guynn, USA Today, 30 July 2026 According to relationship experts at The Gottman Institute, couples who talk through those details in advance tend to adjust more smoothly and argue less about the small stuff that piles up after move-in day. — Ashley Lynch, Sacbee.com, 29 July 2026 Instead of asking whether existing programs are delivering results, Congress piles new spending and new funding streams onto an already fragmented system. — Andy Harris, Baltimore Sun, 4 July 2026 The dirty laundry never piles up, nor does the ready-to-fold pile. — Tessa Cooper, The Spruce, 30 June 2026 More specifically — and without spoiling a story that piles the twists as high as the corpses — Pine's an ex-British soldier pulled from his porter duties and recruited to surveil a ruthless arms dealer, Richard Roper (Hugh Laurie) staying at the hotel. — Matt Cabral, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Apr. 2026 The result piles more pressure on Starmer, the least popular prime minister since records began, according to some polls. — Alexander Smith, NBC news, 27 Feb. 2026 But when snow piles up in powdery white masses, Arizonans can't resist the opportunity to play in it. — Michael Salerno, AZCentral.com, 19 Feb. 2026 His intervention piles fresh pressure on the prime minister. — Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 9 Feb. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for piles

Noun

Inspectors confirmed the reports, finding that exhaust stacks had been partially installed and gas and electrical lines had been connected to the cremation units.

— Alula Alderson, Sacbee.com, 24 Aug. 2026
The salad stacks lean turkey with plant protein from beans and adds healthy fat from avocado, which keeps the meal filling without extras.

— Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 24 Aug. 2026

Definition of stacks

Noun

The team must improve the fabrication process, scale up the laser power, and determine whether the ceramic waveguides can maintain their optical performance under much higher loads.

— Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 22 Aug. 2026
The rocket planes tested reaction-control systems for maneuvering where the air was too thin for normal aerodynamic controls, while gathering data on heating, stability, structural loads, human performance and piloting techniques during reentry.

— Josh Dinner, Space.com, 22 Aug. 2026

Definition of loads

Noun

Chandeliers hang from sandstone ceilings while jewel-tone wallpaper, furs, and velvet warm things up.

— Julia Sayers Gokhale, Midwest Living, 9 Aug. 2026
In others, background actors adjust their chain mail and faux furs and clutch prop weapons, some of which are designed to explode and splatter blood on impact.

— Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 13 July 2026

Definition of furs

Noun

Using luxurious cottons, silks, wools and linen to emphasize the simplicity and ease of wardrobe staples — T-shirts, shorts, sweatshirts, skirts, button-down shirts, pants and tunics — elevating their wearability for day and night.

— Tonya Blazio-Licorish, Footwear News, 4 Aug. 2026
Although the word cashmere is sometimes incorrectly applied to extremely soft wools, only the product of the cashmere goat is true cashmere.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 31 Mar. 2026

Definition of wools

Verb

An engineer overhears a sales call where a partner is requesting a specific feature and immediately huddles with the salesperson once the line clicks shut.

— Vikram Joshi, Forbes.com, 1 June 2026
The boiler is broken, so Kuhner huddles by a small space heater in his office in the winter.

— Emma Green, New Yorker, 17 Apr. 2026

Definition of huddles

Noun

Phenomenal™ lavender thrives where other lavender plants fail – tolerating humidity, heat, and even clay soil, all while producing mounds of fragrant foliage and dazzling blooms.

— Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 20 Aug. 2026
The dough isn’t rolled or cut; instead, spoonfuls of soft biscuit dough are dropped directly over the fruit, forming crisp, golden mounds with fluffy centers.

— Lynda Balslev, Mercury News, 18 Aug. 2026

Definition of mounds

Noun

Authorities seized 18 tons of Colombian marijuana from a shrimp boat early Sunday near Sapelo Sound off the South Georgia coast.

— AJ Willingham, AJC.com, 25 Aug. 2026
The tech company developed a software platform that analyzes and synthesizes tons of sources of operational data.

— Miami Herald, Miami Herald, 25 Aug. 2026

Definition of tons

Noun

In the campaign, Pugh poses wrapped in one of the brand’s camel coats in a minimalist room in front of the camera of Mario Sorrenti, who has a long-standing relationship with the fashion company.

— Sandra Salibian, Footwear News, 21 Aug. 2026
There’s a giant teacup — stripped down to primer gray — in the spray paint bay waiting for its new coats.

— Carole Horst, Variety, 21 Aug. 2026