as in power
the ability to exert effort for the accomplishment of a task
the president pledged to put the full puissance of the nation into the war effort
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of puissance
The reboot arrives at the peak of reggaeton’s pop puissance, and rightfully incorporates a lot more of the genre and its offshoots — Latin trap included.
—
Washington Post, 26 Nov. 2021
Which of you has the puissance to short-term deep-six me?
—Henry Alford, The New Yorker, 5 Apr. 2021
The doctrine’s puissance lies in the separation of powers.
—Matt Ford, The New Republic, 14 Jan. 2020
Over the years, when French leaders have called for a Europe puissance (European power), this has often sounded suspiciously like code for French hegemonic ambitions.
—The Economist, 7 Nov. 2019
There was a time when Jupiter was the king of the gods, and any man who doubted his puissance was ipso facto a barbarian and an ignoramus.
—John E. McIntyre, baltimoresun.com, 29 Aug. 2017
Washington Post, 26 Nov. 2021
Which of you has the puissance to short-term deep-six me?
—Henry Alford, The New Yorker, 5 Apr. 2021
The doctrine’s puissance lies in the separation of powers.
—Matt Ford, The New Republic, 14 Jan. 2020
Over the years, when French leaders have called for a Europe puissance (European power), this has often sounded suspiciously like code for French hegemonic ambitions.
—The Economist, 7 Nov. 2019
There was a time when Jupiter was the king of the gods, and any man who doubted his puissance was ipso facto a barbarian and an ignoramus.
—John E. McIntyre, baltimoresun.com, 29 Aug. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for puissance
Noun
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Hanke relates that it was riddled with loopholes that handed the Banco Central de la República Argentina discretionary monetary powers.—
Shawn Tully,
Fortune,
8 Oct. 2025
-
ProPublica is a nonprofit newsroom that investigates abuses of power.—
Megan O’Matz,
ProPublica,
8 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Linebacker Zaire Franklin could not care less about the Colts’ strength of schedule.—
James Boyd,
New York Times,
6 Oct. 2025
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Another important strength of the category may look at first like a contradiction.—
Rebecca Ackermann,
The Atlantic,
5 Oct. 2025
Noun
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His big, bright smile, infectious energy and eternal positivity created a presence that continually uplifted others.—
Reice Shipley,
MSNBC Newsweek,
4 Oct. 2025
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But sure enough, the artist born Frederick John Philip Gibson enlisted Amy Taylor and company for his drum n’ bass-inflected latest single, harnessing the group’s energy and then exploding it with Gesaffelstein-like sirens and typically all-over-the-place vocal triggers.—
Andrew Unterberger,
Billboard,
3 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Puissance.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/puissance. Accessed 8 Oct. 2025.
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