as in poisoned
containing or contaminated with a substance capable of injuring or killing a living thing
the witch gave Snow White a poison apple
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in toxic
a substance that by chemical action can kill or injure a living thing
the only way to get rid of rats is to leave out poison
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in to taint
to affect slightly with something morally bad or undesirable
poisoning the minds of impressionable children with ethnic hatred
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to pollute
to make unfit for use by the addition of something harmful or undesirable
exhaust fumes poisoning the air
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to degrade
to lower in character, dignity, or quality
this party partisanship poisons the national debate we should be having about this urgent problem
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of poison
Scott White, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2025
Behavior and reproduction Most frogs are nocturnal, but not poison frogs.
—National Geographic, 28 Feb. 2020
Doc Louallen, ABC News, 19 Sep. 2025
It is built for gas exchange, not for filtering poisons.
—Bill Frist, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
Glenn Garner, Deadline, 24 Sep. 2025
Defense attorneys for Mangione had asked Garnett to dismiss his federal charges and to remove the death penalty as a sentencing option, arguing that comments by senior officials poisoned the case.
—Gabe Whisnant, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for poison
Adjective
Constant procedural upheaval and backlogs are poison.
—Scott White, Forbes.com, 15 Aug. 2025
Behavior and reproduction Most frogs are nocturnal, but not poison frogs.
—National Geographic, 28 Feb. 2020
Noun
In that timespan, prosecutors say Craig researched poisons and then bought arsenic, cyanide and other deadly substances and used them to kill his wife, Angela Craig.
—Doc Louallen, ABC News, 19 Sep. 2025
It is built for gas exchange, not for filtering poisons.
—Bill Frist, Forbes.com, 18 Sep. 2025
Verb
After slipping downstairs and getting poisoned, among other humiliating acts, Carr ends up in a body cast and in a puddle of his own waste with his arm immobilized in a persistent sieg heil.
—Glenn Garner, Deadline, 24 Sep. 2025
Defense attorneys for Mangione had asked Garnett to dismiss his federal charges and to remove the death penalty as a sentencing option, arguing that comments by senior officials poisoned the case.
—Gabe Whisnant, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for poison
Recent Examples of Synonyms for poison
Noun
-
Environmental advocates say the new regulation of air toxics, which was required under a 2022 bill called Public Protections From Toxic Air Contaminants, will make the state’s air cleaner and its people healthier.—
Noelle Phillips,
Denver Post,
30 Sep. 2025
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In 2023, 20 steel mills and coke plants nationwide emitted nearly 2.4 million pounds of air toxics, 289,722 tons of criteria air pollutants and 43.3 million metric tons of greenhouse gases, according to the study.—
Maya Wilkins,
Chicago Tribune,
1 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The film centered on the Environmental Protection Agency encasing the Simpsons’ hometown of Springfield in a dome after Homer taints the area’s water supply.—
Ryan Gajewski,
HollywoodReporter,
29 Sep. 2025
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King Charles’ brother, Prince Andrew, has been tainted by his own friendship with Epstein.—
Dan Mangan,
CNBC,
17 Sep. 2025
Verb
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In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, women in cobalt-mining regions have reported reproductive-health concerns such as miscarriages and birth defects; cobalt mining has also polluted croplands.—
Scott W. Stern,
The Atlantic,
2 Oct. 2025
-
The group sees ample opportunity for partnership with some of the denim industry’s leading finishing innovators, who have worked to replace stone-washing techniques—which are polluting and water-guzzling—with lasers to achieve whiskering and distressing.—
Kate Nishimura,
Sourcing Journal,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
But warming ocean temperatures, rising sea levels, disease and human activity, such as pollution, have severely degraded Florida's reefs, according to the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.—
Julia Jacobo,
ABC News,
1 Oct. 2025
-
The team’s goal is to track and predict how asphalt roads degrade.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Chemical reactions involving the hematite can turn the rock from red to white and produce iron rich minerals, in this case an iron phosphate called vivianite and an iron sulfide called greigite.—
Keith Cooper,
Space.com,
1 Oct. 2025
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Perhaps more worrying for Browns fans has been Flacco's propensity to turn the ball over, throwing six interceptions thus far, the second most of any quarterback in football through the first four weeks.—
MSNBC Newsweek,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Powell County paramedic Eddie Barnes and one of his team members were called to the Kentucky Reptile Zoo in May after the zoo’s co-director, James Harrison, was bitten by a poisonous mamba snake, local news outlet LEX 18 reported.—
Toria Sheffield,
PEOPLE,
27 Sep. 2025
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Rather than allowing herself to be captured by the Romans, legend has it that Cleopatra let a poisonous asp bite her in Alexandria, according to the documentary.—
Ashley Strickland,
CNN Money,
26 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
But warming ocean temperatures, rising sea levels, disease and human activity, such as pollution, have severely degraded Florida's reefs, according to the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.—
Julia Jacobo,
ABC News,
1 Oct. 2025
-
In the series, Marie, an ambitious young woman of minor nobility, learns that her lung disease is terminal.—
Emiliano De Pablos,
Variety,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Arsenal host Chelsea in the coming weeks, a two-pronged opportunity for both spoiling and redemption.—
Megan Feringa,
New York Times,
5 Oct. 2025
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Furthermore, exposure to moisture or extreme temperatures (common in laundry rooms) can cause powdered detergents to harden and liquid detergents to spoil.—
Ashlyn Needham,
Southern Living,
5 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Poison.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/poison. Accessed 7 Oct. 2025.
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