SADDLE Synonyms: 88 Similar and Opposite Words

saddle 1 of 2

verb

Definition of saddle

as in to load

to place a weight or burden on to the social worker it seemed as though her supervisor had once again saddled her with a truly hopeless case

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

saddle

2 of 2

noun

ˈsa-dᵊl

as in canyon

a narrow opening between hillsides or mountains that can be used for passage the next day's hike was a stiff climb out of the saddle where they had camped for the night

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 saddle

Verb

Nocturne saddles him with not only a dead child but a dead wife and a dead partner as well, all the better to cement Schreiber’s meticulously grizzled face in an expression of pained stoicism. — Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 29 Oct. 2026 The Newmark report also knocks the draft deal for saddling Miami-Dade with too many risks of cost overruns and other risks that a private company would typically shoulder in a venture like this one. — Douglas Hanks, Miami Herald, 22 Oct. 2026

Noun

And not a single one of them has ever so much as felt a saddle on his back. — Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 30 Oct. 2026 Birkin’s bag was black box, a kind of calf leather, with gilded brass hardware, fashioned in a rectangular shape with saddle stitching and a burnished flap embossed with the initials JB. — Marisa Meltzer, Vanity Fair, 19 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for saddle

Recent Examples of Synonyms for saddle

Verb

Keeping the ship flying night after night took around 100 roadies and stagehands, who had to disassemble it, load it up, haul it to the next city and reassemble it after every gig.

— Adam Kovac, Scientific American, 5 Nov. 2026
Crude oil tankers are docked and loaded at the Bajo Grande oil terminal on Lake Maracaibo in San Francisco, Zulia state, Venezuela, on September 1, 2026.

— Spencer Kimball, CNBC, 5 Nov. 2026

Definition of load

Noun

The Montrose County Sheriff's Office (MCSO) said the body was found on the floor of the park’s Black Canyon, where many trails run along steep 2,000-foot drop-offs and access to the inner canyon is limited.

— Bonny Chu, FOXNews.com, 7 Nov. 2026
The visitor favorite, the Canyon Loop Trail, is an accessible, easy-to-moderate, two-and-a-half-mile walk that loops around its nine canyons.

— Judith Garrison, AJC.com, 5 Nov. 2026

Definition of canyon

Verb

Civil rights groups have warned that data centers are often built in communities already burdened by pollution and climate risk.

— Sasha Tuddenham, Fortune, 29 Oct. 2026
Meanwhile, Connecticut’s own tax fairness studies have shown the combined state and municipal tax systems have disproportionately burdened the poor and middle class.

— Keith M. Phaneuf, Hartford Courant, 29 Oct. 2026

Definition of burden

Verb

But the crowd gathered to greet him at the central Plaza Independencia was much smaller, not even filling half the length of the vast square.

— Carrie Kahn, NPR, 7 Nov. 2026
The post also included photos of a table filled with bouquets gifted to Jenner for her birthday and a shot of her in riding gear on a horse on the beach.

— Escher Walcott, PEOPLE, 7 Nov. 2026

Definition of fill

Noun

Outside, the rocky surfaces of the gorge’s walls alternate between light and shadow while the river glints in the midday sun.

— Sarah Kuta, Condé Nast Traveler, 4 Nov. 2026
For years, a leopard roamed the high mountain ridges and deep gorges in the sparsely populated region of southern Armenia.

— Eric Niiler, New York Times, 30 Oct. 2026

Definition of gorge

Verb

Luckily, Pottery Barn’s plaid shop is packed with festive decor that captures the same nostalgic charm my mom loves.

— Kate Boswell, Southern Living, 7 Nov. 2026
Chutkan's ruling came less than two hours after a federal planning commission packed with presidential allies granted final approval to the arch in an 8-4 vote.

— Rachel Treisman, NPR, 6 Nov. 2026

Definition of pack

Noun

And while Avon itself is quieter than its neighbors, complimentary shuttles run to both Vail and Beaver Creek, so you’re not cut off from the valley’s buzziest restaurants and après spots—just slightly removed from them.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 11 Nov. 2026
The rising sea filled what had once been an enormous river valley, creating the bay and turning high points into islands like Tangier.

— John Anglim, CNN Money, 11 Nov. 2026

Definition of valley

Browse Nearby Words

saddens

saddle

saddled

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Saddle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/saddle. Accessed 13 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of saddle

verb

noun

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster on saddle

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

impertinent

Popular in Grammar & Usage

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

31 Useful Rhetorical Devices

More Commonly Misspelled Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Popular in Wordplay

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Longest Long Words List

The Words of the Week - Nov. 13

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

Popular

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Games & Quizzes