as in accumulations
a mass or quantity that has piled up or that has been gathered over a period of time
a pileup of e-mail messages that needed to be dealt with
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
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 pileups
Seven vehicles were involved in two pileups that occurred in a five-minute period Monday on the Golden Gate Bridge, the California Highway Patrol reported.
—
Cameron MacDonald, Mercury News, 10 Feb. 2026
In recent weeks California's Central Valley has been blanketed with a thick dense fog known as tule (TOO-lee) fog, causing massive vehicle pileups along Interstate-5 along Highway CA-99.
—Janet Loehrke, USA Today, 5 Feb. 2026
On Tuesday night, New York City’s color-loving partygoers braved the fierce cold, emerging from cars on Gansevoort Street clad in floor-length sequin gowns and a kaleidoscope of prints, stepping over three-foot snow pileups to enter the museum.
—Gaby Keiderling, Vogue, 28 Jan. 2026
Smart uses of trays can add style and function to your home and avoid clutter pileups.
—Abby Wolner, Better Homes & Gardens, 7 Jan. 2026
Such low visibility poses a considerable risk, potentially leading to accidents and vehicle pileups.
—Anna Skinner, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Oct. 2025
Instead, the generic ‘90s throwback action movie plays like a string of car-crash pileups and urban destruction with little of interest in terms of the human element.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 30 Sep. 2025
These particle pileups produce a petabyte of data every second, the most interesting of which is poured into data centers, accessible to thousands of physicists worldwide.
—IEEE Spectrum, 2 Apr. 2025
Cameron MacDonald, Mercury News, 10 Feb. 2026
In recent weeks California's Central Valley has been blanketed with a thick dense fog known as tule (TOO-lee) fog, causing massive vehicle pileups along Interstate-5 along Highway CA-99.
—Janet Loehrke, USA Today, 5 Feb. 2026
On Tuesday night, New York City’s color-loving partygoers braved the fierce cold, emerging from cars on Gansevoort Street clad in floor-length sequin gowns and a kaleidoscope of prints, stepping over three-foot snow pileups to enter the museum.
—Gaby Keiderling, Vogue, 28 Jan. 2026
Smart uses of trays can add style and function to your home and avoid clutter pileups.
—Abby Wolner, Better Homes & Gardens, 7 Jan. 2026
Such low visibility poses a considerable risk, potentially leading to accidents and vehicle pileups.
—Anna Skinner, MSNBC Newsweek, 30 Oct. 2025
Instead, the generic ‘90s throwback action movie plays like a string of car-crash pileups and urban destruction with little of interest in terms of the human element.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 30 Sep. 2025
These particle pileups produce a petabyte of data every second, the most interesting of which is poured into data centers, accessible to thousands of physicists worldwide.
—IEEE Spectrum, 2 Apr. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pileups
Noun
-
Hundreds of motorists were stranded on Rhode Island roads, trapped by accumulations measured in feet — more than 3 feet in northern parts of the state.—
Lynne Sullivan,
The Providence Journal,
22 Feb. 2026
-
Städdag prevents those slow accumulations from turning into all-day cleaning projects.—
Mary Cornetta,
Better Homes & Gardens,
22 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
When the power fails, businesses close, employees lose wages, and spoiled inventory piles up.—
Israel Melendez Ayala,
Time,
28 Feb. 2026
-
Defeat piles pressure on Starmer before May elections Labour won just over half the vote in Gorton and Denton at the last general election in 2024.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
27 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Macaroons are chewy jumbles of coconut bound together with egg whites and sweetened condensed milk.—
Lynda Balslev,
Mercury News,
10 Feb. 2026
-
The result also spotlights conference championships’ awkward fit in the current system, particularly given the fact that conference expansion has led to jumbles atop each league’s standings.—
Jacob Feldman,
Sportico.com,
7 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
The challenges lie mostly in the big difference between gasoline and diesel engine designs; specifically compression ratios and fuel mixtures.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
23 Feb. 2026
-
Without aluminum alloys and other metallic mixtures, assembly lines churning out modern tanks, trucks and airplanes would grind to a halt.—
Thomas Robertson,
Fortune,
17 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Once fully operational, the hotel plans to invite local DJs to share selections from their personal collections on the weekends.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
26 Feb. 2026
-
Her Meryll Rogge collections are full of color, wit, and sophistication, but always with a dash of the unexpected.—
Nicole Phelps,
Vogue,
25 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
There’s also a huge ballroom, complete with its own working fireplace that allows for large-scale gatherings in stylish surroundings, something that is lacking elsewhere in Edinburgh.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
24 Feb. 2026
-
The clubhouse is available for private rentals, offering a setting for weddings, anniversaries, business meetings and community gatherings.—
Debby Rice,
Mercury News,
24 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Pileups.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pileups. Accessed 2 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
