1
as in drilled
to make a hole or series of holes in
several signs along the highway were riddled by buckshot
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in suffused
to spread throughout
the newspaper exposé revealed a gaming commission that is riddled with corruption
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of riddled
These parts are just so… tangible, especially in a sport that’s riddled with variables that are really not in our control.
—
Nick Remsen, Vogue, 7 Feb. 2026
During the hourslong plane ride from Minnesota to Texas, Elizabeth was riddled with fear that she would be sent to Ecuador, said Gutierrez, a family spokesperson.
—Holly Yan, CNN Money, 6 Feb. 2026
My own family was once riddled with addiction, and its wake is devastating.
—Gillian Telling, PEOPLE, 3 Feb. 2026
Thus, taxpayers are often stuck financing underperforming government programs riddled with waste and outright fraud, as was the case in the recent $30 billion scandal that afflicted the state’s unemployment insurance program.
—Lanhee J. Chen, Mercury News, 31 Jan. 2026
But the sidewalk commentators had stories too, riddled with escape, survival, triumph.
—Literary Hub, 29 Jan. 2026
Scott and his surviving companions were starving, riddled with frostbite, and experiencing hypothermia.
—Christopher Ferguson, Big Think, 29 Jan. 2026
Pretti was on his knees, restrained, posing no apparent threat, when he was riddled with bullets.
—Peter Wehner, The Atlantic, 29 Jan. 2026
In the film, Charli XCX plays herself, but she is riddled with anxiety, doubt, and confusion about where her career should go next.
—Dominique Fluker, Forbes.com, 29 Jan. 2026
Nick Remsen, Vogue, 7 Feb. 2026
During the hourslong plane ride from Minnesota to Texas, Elizabeth was riddled with fear that she would be sent to Ecuador, said Gutierrez, a family spokesperson.
—Holly Yan, CNN Money, 6 Feb. 2026
My own family was once riddled with addiction, and its wake is devastating.
—Gillian Telling, PEOPLE, 3 Feb. 2026
Thus, taxpayers are often stuck financing underperforming government programs riddled with waste and outright fraud, as was the case in the recent $30 billion scandal that afflicted the state’s unemployment insurance program.
—Lanhee J. Chen, Mercury News, 31 Jan. 2026
But the sidewalk commentators had stories too, riddled with escape, survival, triumph.
—Literary Hub, 29 Jan. 2026
Scott and his surviving companions were starving, riddled with frostbite, and experiencing hypothermia.
—Christopher Ferguson, Big Think, 29 Jan. 2026
Pretti was on his knees, restrained, posing no apparent threat, when he was riddled with bullets.
—Peter Wehner, The Atlantic, 29 Jan. 2026
In the film, Charli XCX plays herself, but she is riddled with anxiety, doubt, and confusion about where her career should go next.
—Dominique Fluker, Forbes.com, 29 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for riddled
Verb
-
He was drilled by Seahawks cornerback Devon Witherspoon on his second interception as Witherspoon hit Maye’s arm and the ball floated out of his hands and right to Nwosu, who had nothing but open field in front of him.—
Greg Dudek,
Hartford Courant,
9 Feb. 2026
-
Instead, Jason Myers drilled his third field goal of the game, giving the Seahawks a 9-0 lead with 11 seconds to go.—
February 9,
CBS News,
9 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Reid seemed to truly believe, despite the partisanship that suffused the column, that the Senate had been badly damaged.—
Jon Ralston,
The Atlantic,
18 Jan. 2026
-
Slow-attack tones emerge and are subsumed back within the haze, like single strands of a spiderweb zooming in and out of focus; the uppermost reaches are suffused in a delicate scrim of what sounds like electronic crickets.—
Philip Sherburne,
Pitchfork,
14 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Exotic music pierced with bird calls.—
Sean Timberlake,
Sacbee.com,
6 Feb. 2026
-
The center is engraved in a pattern of undulating rays emanating from the hour and minute guichets (windows), meant to resemble the edges of clouds pierced through with sunlight.—
Carol Besler,
Robb Report,
6 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
New groups have sprouted, and protests have penetrated formerly docile suburbs.—
Taylor Seely,
AZCentral.com,
10 Feb. 2026
-
Bane similarly penetrated the paint and scored a team-high 14 points before the break, ending with 20-plus points for the 26th time in a Magic uniform.—
Jason Beede,
The Orlando Sentinel,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Abigail Boyd, an opposition Green lawmaker in the state parliament, said she had been punched by officers while attempting to vacate the site.—
Reuters,
NBC news,
10 Feb. 2026
-
But McCalla then got up, pursued Mudd and punched him.—
Bay Area News Group,
Mercury News,
10 Feb. 2026
Verb
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In a motion filed Friday, defense attorneys argued that publicity surrounding the case has so permeated Summit County that seating an impartial jury is no longer realistic.—
Stepheny Price,
FOXNews.com,
7 Feb. 2026
-
The spa The full-service spa with 10 indoor and outdoor treatment rooms is permeated with Asian influences in its interior design—there’s a central stone courtyard with a reflection pond and Zen meditation garden—and its treatment menu.—
Lizbeth Scordo,
Condé Nast Traveler,
31 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The episode has punctured Preckwinkle’s reputation for managerial skill — a primary reason this page has endorsed her in previous elections despite some disagreements with other aspects of her record.—
The Editorial Board,
Chicago Tribune,
31 Jan. 2026
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One of the bullets struck Boyd in the abdomen, traveled through his body, and ultimately punctured one of his lungs.—
Preezy Brown,
VIBE.com,
22 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The southern Portuguese city of Alcacer do Sal, about 60 miles from Lisbon, was battling rising waters from the river Sado, with downtown areas flooded and water levels measuring roughly 7 feet high in some places.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
6 Feb. 2026
-
The violence broke out after hundreds of middle and high school students flooded the downtown to protest.—
Alexandra Koch,
FOXNews.com,
5 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Riddled.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/riddled. Accessed 12 Feb. 2026.
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