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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

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
CPUs are all the rage lately to manage agentic AI. Jim Cramer, CNBC, 24 Apr. 2026 Fire safety officials warned Georgia residents to be cautious and ready for evacuations as the wildfires gripping the state rage on, with changing weather conditions affecting containment. Ivan Pereira, ABC News, 24 Apr. 2026
Verb
That said, that growth has stalled as the Middle East conflict rages on. Anniek Bao, CNBC, 16 Apr. 2026 World War two is raging in Europe. Marcy Thompson, Scientific American, 16 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for rage
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rage
Noun
  • The novel delivers all the frenzy of a gold rush with rhythmic, hypnotic prose.
    Kat Chen, Condé Nast Traveler, 25 Apr. 2026
  • Look at the frenzy of activity on Thursday night.
    Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 24 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • But fights are just as integral to the Netflix show created by Lee Sung Jin, and the series’ sound team needed to do even more meticulous work building visceral senses of anger, stress, and dread that slowly swallow up the characters and steer them into making a compounding set of poor decisions.
    Sarah Shachat, IndieWire, 24 Apr. 2026
  • As Columbia, Rodriguez takes big, bold swings, shifting from manic exuberance to bruised vulnerability to feral anger over the course of the night.
    Dave Quinn, PEOPLE, 24 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • Just when the world seems to have caught on to the duanju craze, Chinese companies are midway through another seismic change.
    Chang Che, New Yorker, 25 Apr. 2026
  • The duo had jump-started the AI-for-Erdős craze late last year by prompting a free version of ChatGPT with open problems chosen at random from the Erdős problems website.
    Joseph Howlett, Scientific American, 24 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • Girardi — who was placed under a temporary conservatorship after being diagnosed with Alzheimer's and dementia — reported to prison in July to begin his seven-year sentence.
    Brianne Tracy, PEOPLE, 24 Apr. 2026
  • Greenhaven had racked up years of health violations, including from letting untrained workers administer medications, lacking enough employees to care for people with dementia, and neglecting a resident who smeared feces over his body, bed, floor, and bathroom, the notice said.
    Jordan Rau, Miami Herald, 23 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • Certainly, classmates know the perpetrators, as do some parents who have stormed at least one school board session seeking answers.
    Charles Selle, Chicago Tribune, 20 Apr. 2026
  • An invading army of tens of thousands of soldiers led by Lucius Cornelius Sulla, an influential commander and later dictator of Rome, stormed the town’s walls with slings and catapults.
    Taylor Mitchell Brown, Scientific American, 20 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • Sometimes the reception to my style was not ideal, especially when judges would clock my handmade or altered garments as cheap or not properly steamed.
    Gabe Montesanti, PEOPLE, 19 Apr. 2026
  • Operators of cruise ships, which guzzle fuel, also steamed higher.
    Stan Choe, Los Angeles Times, 17 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • Prosecutors say the gunman, disguised as a police officer, began his rampage by shooting Hoffman and his wife, then stopped at the residences of two other lawmakers who weren't home.
    ABC News, ABC News, 24 Apr. 2026
  • But the Gunslinger’s murderous rampage is a symptom of a larger problem.
    Keith Phipps, Vulture, 23 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • Both are completely honest without fear of escalation or indignation.
    Mark Travers, CNBC, 19 Apr. 2026
  • Surely there was something more beneath all this mild pleasantness, some edge of resentment, a few shards of indignation on the brink of cutting through.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 1 Apr. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Rage.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rage. Accessed 27 Apr. 2026.

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