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rage

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verb

Synonym Chooser

How does the noun rage differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of rage are anger, fury, indignation, ire, and wrath. While all these words mean "an intense emotional state induced by displeasure," rage and fury suggest loss of self-control from violence of emotion.

shook with rage
could not contain his fury

Where would anger be a reasonable alternative to rage?

The words anger and rage can be used in similar contexts, but anger, the most general term, names the reaction but by itself does not convey cause or intensity.

tried to hide his anger

When can indignation be used instead of rage?

While in some cases nearly identical to rage, indignation stresses righteous anger at what one considers unfair, mean, or shameful.

a comment that caused general indignation

In what contexts can ire take the place of rage?

While the synonyms ire and rage are close in meaning, ire, more frequent in literary contexts, suggests an intense anger, often with an evident display of feeling.

cheeks flushed with ire

When is it sensible to use wrath instead of rage?

The synonyms wrath and rage are sometimes interchangeable, but wrath is likely to suggest a desire or intent to punish or get revenge.

I feared her wrath if I was discovered

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 rage
Noun
The curse is a vengeful spirit that possesses a person in a powerful rage before claiming their life and spreading to another victim. Caitlin White, Variety, 3 Oct. 2025 Jane testified during the trial that Combs once broke down four doors trying to get her and then choked, punched, and kicked her in a rage. Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 3 Oct. 2025
Verb
In the summer of 2022 when inflation was raging at four-decade highs and consumer sentiment plunged to its lowest level on record, Americans continued to spend at a solid clip in the following months. Bryan Mena, CNN Money, 26 Sep. 2025 But the American leaders who midwifed the UN as World War II was still raging were somber realists, not utopians. Andreas Kluth, Mercury News, 26 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for rage
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rage
Noun
  • Wall Street holds near record highs in a government-data blackout , with enough rotational energy toward left-behind groups, refreshed confidence in the AI spending frenzy, certainty of a Fed rate cut this month and speculative aggression in lower-quality longshots to keep the indexes aloft.
    Michael Santoli, CNBC, 3 Oct. 2025
  • The Red Sox have room to pay him now that Rafael Devers' contract is off the books, but Bregman could cause a frenzy in free agency.
    Aaliyan Mohammed, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Verbatim Reginald Dwayne Betts A 2012 essay from the American Poetry Review on poetry and the architecture of anger.
    JSTOR Daily, JSTOR Daily, 3 Oct. 2025
  • Morocco Anti-government protests fueled by anger over Morocco pouring money into preparations for the 2030 World Cup instead of public services have raged in the country for nearly a week.
    Connor Greene, Time, 2 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Two months before Twilight kicked off the glittery vampire craze, Alan Ball’s True Blood had already put an original, sexy spin on the jugular-draining genre.
    Matt Cabral, Entertainment Weekly, 4 Oct. 2025
  • The low-fat craze of the '80s and '90s left sales of similar deli meats like bologna dropping year after year, according to the blog Food Republic.
    Deirdre Bardolf, FOXNews.com, 4 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • This is the conclusion of a study led by researchers from Florida's Hubbs-SeaWorld Research Institute, who suspect that—just like some adult humans with dementia are occasionally found wandering far from their homes—dolphins may become similarly disoriented when suffering from Alzheimer's.
    Maria Azzurra Volpe, MSNBC Newsweek, 3 Oct. 2025
  • Advertisement Another 2025 study by researchers from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, found that adopting the MIND diet, even later in life, may reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia.
    Arianna Huffington, Time, 1 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Proposition 50 is California’s armament in a redistricting war that has stormed into at least three states and threatens to spread to others.
    Nicole Nixon, Sacbee.com, 2 Oct. 2025
  • At the height of the protests the demonstrators stormed and partially burnt the parliament in Nairobi and dozens of protesters were killed.
    Emmanuel Akinwotu, NPR, 2 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • After the hat has cooled, Rosa—a factory floor veteran of 30 years—will steam it to relax the fur’s fibers, and then inspect it for stains and imperfections.
    Eric Twardzik, Robb Report, 3 Oct. 2025
  • Unlike most apple pie recipes, this one calls for the apples to be steamed in a steamer basket.
    Phoebe Evans, Southern Living, 1 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • On July 30, investigators say a 53-year-old man went on a flag-burning rampage in Northside and Clifton.
    Kevin Grasha, Cincinnati Enquirer, 3 Oct. 2025
  • The press conference comes almost a week after Thomas Jacob Sanford, 40, allegedly killed four people and injured eight others during his rampage before being shot dead by the two local officials who responded to the scene.
    Mason Leath, ABC News, 3 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • McBride sets the political context for Swift’s savage indignation by noting that 1727–1729 saw three successive harvest failures in Ireland.
    Matthew Wills, JSTOR Daily, 30 Sep. 2025
  • Passions run as high as style, and candor and fervor blend with humor, to endow anecdotes and reflections with pride and purpose along with mourning and indignation.
    Richard Brody, New Yorker, 23 Sep. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Rage.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rage. Accessed 7 Oct. 2025.

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