1
as in informants
a person who provides information about another's wrongdoing
the drug mule refused to turn rat without a guarantee of immunity
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in lovers
someone who regularly spends time in a particular place
on Friday night the mall rats were out in full force
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in dogs
a person whose behavior is offensive to others
no one can understand what she finds appealing in a rat like him
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of rats
Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 8 Apr. 2026
Other small mammals like ferrets, degus, sugar gliders, chinchillas, gerbils, hamsters, guinea pigs, rats and mice are all allowed as pets.
—Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 7 Apr. 2026
Unfortunately, rodenticides don’t just kill rats.
—Joan Morris, Mercury News, 6 Apr. 2026
Sacramento’s smallest zoo Alali now lives in Natomas with her fiancé, Alex Saraceno, along with Merlin; a girl group of rats named Monica, Moira and Amy; a former prison pigeon named Al Capone; a bearded dragon named Muffy; and a dog named Maverick.
—Camila Pedrosa, Sacbee.com, 5 Apr. 2026
Passengers were abandoning them, like rats scuttling off a sinking ship, and people stood on the sidewalks, looking at their phones, or looking at the city, frowning, desperate.
—Catherine Lacey, New Yorker, 5 Apr. 2026
The city will focus first on Adams Morgan, a lively corridor full of restaurants, bars, homes and — to residents’ chagrin — many, many rats.
—Jenny Gathright, Washington Post, 3 Apr. 2026
Nearby, her downstairs neighbor, Marina Quiroz, was showing a video of rats scurrying through her kitchen to a representative of the city’s tenant protection office.
—ABC News, 3 Apr. 2026
Rosemary repels squirrels, deer, rats, mice, snails, slugs, and insects like mosquitoes, Mexican bean beetles, Japanese beetles, cabbage moths, and carrot flies.
—Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 2 Apr. 2026
Noun
Plus, his teammates love to fire those rubber rats fans throw onto the ice at him after wins, so there was some incentive there, too.
—Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 8 Apr. 2026
Other small mammals like ferrets, degus, sugar gliders, chinchillas, gerbils, hamsters, guinea pigs, rats and mice are all allowed as pets.
—Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 7 Apr. 2026
Unfortunately, rodenticides don’t just kill rats.
—Joan Morris, Mercury News, 6 Apr. 2026
Sacramento’s smallest zoo Alali now lives in Natomas with her fiancé, Alex Saraceno, along with Merlin; a girl group of rats named Monica, Moira and Amy; a former prison pigeon named Al Capone; a bearded dragon named Muffy; and a dog named Maverick.
—Camila Pedrosa, Sacbee.com, 5 Apr. 2026
Passengers were abandoning them, like rats scuttling off a sinking ship, and people stood on the sidewalks, looking at their phones, or looking at the city, frowning, desperate.
—Catherine Lacey, New Yorker, 5 Apr. 2026
The city will focus first on Adams Morgan, a lively corridor full of restaurants, bars, homes and — to residents’ chagrin — many, many rats.
—Jenny Gathright, Washington Post, 3 Apr. 2026
Nearby, her downstairs neighbor, Marina Quiroz, was showing a video of rats scurrying through her kitchen to a representative of the city’s tenant protection office.
—ABC News, 3 Apr. 2026
Rosemary repels squirrels, deer, rats, mice, snails, slugs, and insects like mosquitoes, Mexican bean beetles, Japanese beetles, cabbage moths, and carrot flies.
—Kim Toscano, Southern Living, 2 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rats
Noun
-
Shiwa Hassanpour, an activist with the human rights monitor Hengaw Organization, based in Iraq’s Kurdish region, said people have been shot for approaching the border, because Iranian forces suspect them of being spies or informants.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
30 Mar. 2026
-
The Weathermen and Panthers held meetings together and exchanged intel about government surveillance and police informants.—
Zayd Ayers Dohrn,
New Yorker,
28 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Uncompromising lovers of luxury.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
5 Apr. 2026
-
While the storm is looming, there are new glimmers of possibility—friends can become lovers, strangers can become friends on the subway, the supermarket aisles are charged with meaning.—
Andrew Marantz,
New Yorker,
5 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Residents in Charlotte and unincorporated parts of Mecklenburg County are required to purchase a license for dogs and cats over 4 months old.—
Nick Sullivan,
Charlotte Observer,
6 Apr. 2026
-
In a recording of a different non-emergency call demonstrated for USA TODAY, the Aurelian system answered a call from a man reporting his neighbor's barking dogs.—
Trevor Hughes,
USA Today,
6 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
And so every regime invests in having student informers.—
Anne Applebaum,
The Atlantic,
23 Jan. 2026
-
Security services also rely on informers to tell them who might be using Starlink, and search internet and social media traffic for signs it has been used.—
David Rising,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
The game turned some Wildcat fans into Wolverine fans, at least for one night.—
Jack Springgate,
CBS News,
6 Apr. 2026
-
The Hornets have experienced 23 sellouts this season, establishing a new mark in the uptown arena, and exceeded an average of 18,000 fans per game.—
Roderick Boone,
Charlotte Observer,
6 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The proverbial canaries in coal mines will then cause a recession.—
Jim Cramer,
CNBC,
1 Mar. 2026
-
By crunching data from millions of monthly payroll records for workers in jobs with exposure to generative AI, the authors concluded that workers ages 22 to 25—the canaries—have seen about a 13 percent decline in employment since late 2022.—
Josh Tyrangiel,
The Atlantic,
10 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
One begins to think that the condition is hereditary—that, instead of a Habsburg jaw, the wealthy white denizens of New Orleans high society are saddled with emotional problems.—
Brandy Jensen,
New Yorker,
8 Apr. 2026
-
Skill in understanding the natural world and identifying its denizens.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
6 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Plot details are being kept under wraps, though the film has been described as a four-quadrant coming-of-age comedy set in the world of funny and evil clowns.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
7 Apr. 2026
-
From ringmasters and lions to clowns and mimes, everyone went all out with their party attire.—
Ashlyn Robinette,
PEOPLE,
6 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Rats.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rats. Accessed 12 Apr. 2026.
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