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
Ross Mantle, New York Times, 21 May 2026
Yeah, this is a virus that's a natural virus of rodents, of certain species of mice and rats, not typically household rodents, but more those that are out in the wild.
—Dana Taylor, USA Today, 20 May 2026
Argentine investigators trudging through mud to retrieve the dead rats declined to speak to journalists about their work.
—ABC News, 19 May 2026
People typically get hantavirus from contact with rodents like rats and mice—normally when exposed to their urine, droppings and saliva, or sometimes through a bite or scratch—but officials say no rodents have been found on the MV Hondius ship.
—Mary Whitfill Roeloffs, Forbes.com, 18 May 2026
There are rats in the yard from the orange tree.
—Joan Morris, Mercury News, 18 May 2026
Hantaviruses are typically spread by rodents such as mice or rats.
—Tanya Lewis, Scientific American, 13 May 2026
One point public health officials have repeatedly emphasized is that hantavirus normally infects people who come into contact with urine or droppings from infected rats.
—Brenda Goodman, CNN Money, 12 May 2026
Doctors say that while there are a lot of rats and mice in Chicago, hantavirus has not been detected in the city's rodent population.
—Sara Tenenbaum, CBS News, 12 May 2026
Noun
There were fewer than four minutes left, and possibly four more rats to find.
—Ross Mantle, New York Times, 21 May 2026
Yeah, this is a virus that's a natural virus of rodents, of certain species of mice and rats, not typically household rodents, but more those that are out in the wild.
—Dana Taylor, USA Today, 20 May 2026
Argentine investigators trudging through mud to retrieve the dead rats declined to speak to journalists about their work.
—ABC News, 19 May 2026
People typically get hantavirus from contact with rodents like rats and mice—normally when exposed to their urine, droppings and saliva, or sometimes through a bite or scratch—but officials say no rodents have been found on the MV Hondius ship.
—Mary Whitfill Roeloffs, Forbes.com, 18 May 2026
There are rats in the yard from the orange tree.
—Joan Morris, Mercury News, 18 May 2026
Hantaviruses are typically spread by rodents such as mice or rats.
—Tanya Lewis, Scientific American, 13 May 2026
One point public health officials have repeatedly emphasized is that hantavirus normally infects people who come into contact with urine or droppings from infected rats.
—Brenda Goodman, CNN Money, 12 May 2026
Doctors say that while there are a lot of rats and mice in Chicago, hantavirus has not been detected in the city's rodent population.
—Sara Tenenbaum, CBS News, 12 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rats
Noun
-
The Justice Department accuses the group of fraud in connection with its payments to informants.—
Ella Lee,
The Hill,
6 May 2026
-
Greylord was a watershed in its use of eavesdropping devices and a mole to obtain evidence instead of relying on wrongdoers to become government informants.—
Kori Rumore,
Chicago Tribune,
4 May 2026
Noun
-
The two played lovers on the award-winning HBO series, Driver’s character being quite the abusive onscreen boyfriend at times.—
Anthony D'Alessandro,
Deadline,
17 May 2026
-
For beach lovers looking to steer clear of crowds, Florida's Forgotten Coast is a welcome reprieve.—
Tara Massouleh McCay,
Southern Living,
17 May 2026
Noun
-
About 90% of dogs with Lyme disease show no symptoms, the association said.—
Don Sweeney,
Sacbee.com,
18 May 2026
-
This, afterall, was a family who when Avedon was a child growing up in Manhattan, would sometimes borrow other people’s pet dogs to complete the happy family photo.—
Sheena McKenzie,
CNN Money,
18 May 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
-
For a club already facing relegation on the pitch, their own fans may have just dealt them the final, crushing blow.—
Alejandro Avila OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
18 May 2026
-
The bulk of the fans who remained after Detroit’s blowout Game 7 loss at Little Caesars Arena were there for the Cleveland Cavaliers after being bussed in by owner Dan Gilbert.—
Hunter Patterson,
New York Times,
18 May 2026
Noun
-
That principle is why coal miners once brought canaries underground, as one emergency medicine doctor explained in a recent court declaration.—
Lisa Song,
ProPublica,
7 May 2026
-
These living materials could also serve as canaries in the coal mine for water safety, glowing brighter or dimming in the presence of specific toxins.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
7 May 2026
Noun
-
Politically, the industry was equal parts liberal and libertarian, and was perhaps best reflected by the Electronic Frontier Foundation, created to protect the denizens of cyberspace from an overreaching government.—
Jonathan Weber,
Fortune,
19 May 2026
-
Inside this vast, mysterious void, denizens of the realm may explore these locales by either Rising or Sinking.—
Jeff Spry,
Space.com,
18 May 2026
Noun
-
The four paintings are Joan Miró’s Composition (1953), Maurice Utrillo’s Maison de rendez-vous de chasse de Henri IV, rue Saint-Vincent, Montmartre (1934), Balthus’s Etude pour femme couchée (1948), and Pablo Picasso’s L’Ecuyere et les clowns (1961).—
Daniel Cassady,
ARTnews.com,
6 May 2026
-
Once completed, the $5 million acquisition will ensure the theater has a permanent home, a place where skateboarding clowns and leek-haired onions can continue to frolic and dance for decades to come.—
Todd Martens,
Los Angeles Times,
13 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Rats.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rats. Accessed 22 May. 2026.
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