variants
also rôles
as in functions
the action for which a person or thing is specially fitted or used or for which a thing exists
studying the role of sunlight in the body's production of vitamin D
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
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 roles
Variety was first to report on the guest starring roles added to the Scrubs reboot.
—
Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 3 Oct. 2025
This combination of liberal arts and engineering disciplines provided her with both analytical thinking skills and technical expertise, which would prove handy in her later roles in Silicon Valley.
—Dave Smith, Fortune, 3 Oct. 2025
On top of that, the rise of artificial intelligence has raised alarms that entry-level, knowledge-worker roles will be automated away.
—Alex Harring, CNBC, 3 Oct. 2025
Driver has garnered Academy Award nominations for his roles in Noah Baumbach’s Marriage Story and Spike Lee’s BlacKkKlansman.
—Justin Kroll, Deadline, 3 Oct. 2025
Burns, McGlone, and Britton all reprise their roles from the original film, and are joined by McMullen franchise newbies Tracee Ellis Ross, Juliana Canfield, Pico Alexander, Brian d’Arcy James, and Halston Sage.
—Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 3 Oct. 2025
Exeter’s website shows that several former Santander executives took leadership roles at Exeter starting in 2015, while Santander Consumer was under state and federal scrutiny.
—Tony Schick, ProPublica, 3 Oct. 2025
Women in the Gulf, especially Saudi Arabia, have taken on greater roles in society and the workplace over the past decade, rising to prominence in fashion, music, film, and the arts.
—Camilla Wright, semafor.com, 3 Oct. 2025
But there’s a lot of good research out there on birth order, gender roles, and sibling dynamics in general.
—Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 3 Oct. 2025
Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 3 Oct. 2025
This combination of liberal arts and engineering disciplines provided her with both analytical thinking skills and technical expertise, which would prove handy in her later roles in Silicon Valley.
—Dave Smith, Fortune, 3 Oct. 2025
On top of that, the rise of artificial intelligence has raised alarms that entry-level, knowledge-worker roles will be automated away.
—Alex Harring, CNBC, 3 Oct. 2025
Driver has garnered Academy Award nominations for his roles in Noah Baumbach’s Marriage Story and Spike Lee’s BlacKkKlansman.
—Justin Kroll, Deadline, 3 Oct. 2025
Burns, McGlone, and Britton all reprise their roles from the original film, and are joined by McMullen franchise newbies Tracee Ellis Ross, Juliana Canfield, Pico Alexander, Brian d’Arcy James, and Halston Sage.
—Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 3 Oct. 2025
Exeter’s website shows that several former Santander executives took leadership roles at Exeter starting in 2015, while Santander Consumer was under state and federal scrutiny.
—Tony Schick, ProPublica, 3 Oct. 2025
Women in the Gulf, especially Saudi Arabia, have taken on greater roles in society and the workplace over the past decade, rising to prominence in fashion, music, film, and the arts.
—Camilla Wright, semafor.com, 3 Oct. 2025
But there’s a lot of good research out there on birth order, gender roles, and sibling dynamics in general.
—Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 3 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for roles
Noun
-
The technology functions by analyzing the measurements from existing sensors to generate new, synthetic data for another sensor that may be failing or too slow to capture key events.—
Aman Tripathi,
Interesting Engineering,
2 Oct. 2025
-
The government shutdown that began this week furloughed thousands of federal workers, froze essential government functions across the nation — and also halted an essential part of Florida’s booming real estate market.—
Alex Harris,
Miami Herald,
2 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
One of the hardest parts of shelter life is social isolation.—
Lucy Notarantonio,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Oct. 2025
-
In recent months, China expanded visa waivers to tourists from much of Europe, Asia, and parts of the Middle East, sought to attract more international students to its universities and exchange programs, and boosted its trade and diplomatic relationships with the rest of the world.—
Miranda Jeyaretnam,
Time,
1 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Elon Musk and other AI leaders continue to insist that artificial general intelligence (AGI)—an AI that can think and learn like a human, across many tasks—is on the horizon.—
Sharon Goldman,
Fortune,
1 Oct. 2025
-
Despite taking on extra tasks in hopes of landing a promotion, her career at the company never advanced.—
Sophie Caldwell,
CNBC,
1 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Roles.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/roles. Accessed 6 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share