as in beach
the usually sandy or gravelly land bordering a body of water
we went for a moonlight walk on the sands
Synonyms & Similar Words
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as in rubs
to make smooth by friction
painstakingly sanded down the wooden floors of the old house
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of sands
Adithi Ramakrishnan, Los Angeles Times, 20 Jan. 2026
While Rolls-Royce Cullinans waited to ferry guests to the golden sands of Jardin Tropézina, the hotel's chic beach club, children were far more enchanted by the whimsical little train that chugged them toward the 5,500-square-foot kids’ club.
—Amy Louise Bailey, Travel + Leisure, 19 Jan. 2026
The neighborhood The resort sits directly on the UAE’s most pristine stretch of natural beach, where white sands melt into jewel-blue waters, and dolphins play in the surf year-round.
—Sophie Prideaux, Condé Nast Traveler, 19 Jan. 2026
Royalton Bavaro Punta Cana, Dominican Republic There are almost 200 swim-out rooms available at Royalton Bavaro, which sits along the golden sands of Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic.
—Beth Luberecki, USA Today, 17 Jan. 2026
Its gorgeous new three-mile-long beachfront promenade is bound to draw more visitors, ready to laze on honeyed sands and gorge on fresh seafood plucked from the waters directly out front.
—Duncan Madden, Forbes.com, 16 Jan. 2026
That’s partly because the sands are slowly shifting in Washington.
—Lisa Hagen, Hartford Courant, 12 Jan. 2026
New details are emerging about a woman whose body was found on the sands of Hollywood Beach the day after Christmas.
—Joan Murray, Miami Herald, 10 Jan. 2026
By the second week of December, the driller reached a depth of 1,450 feet and struck oil sands.
—David Goldman, CNN Money, 5 Jan. 2026
Matt Fuchs, Time, 24 Nov. 2025
Noun
Egypt’s mummies are the most well-known, but the process can also happen naturally in places like glacier ice, desert sands and bog sludge.
—Adithi Ramakrishnan, Los Angeles Times, 20 Jan. 2026
While Rolls-Royce Cullinans waited to ferry guests to the golden sands of Jardin Tropézina, the hotel's chic beach club, children were far more enchanted by the whimsical little train that chugged them toward the 5,500-square-foot kids’ club.
—Amy Louise Bailey, Travel + Leisure, 19 Jan. 2026
The neighborhood The resort sits directly on the UAE’s most pristine stretch of natural beach, where white sands melt into jewel-blue waters, and dolphins play in the surf year-round.
—Sophie Prideaux, Condé Nast Traveler, 19 Jan. 2026
Royalton Bavaro Punta Cana, Dominican Republic There are almost 200 swim-out rooms available at Royalton Bavaro, which sits along the golden sands of Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic.
—Beth Luberecki, USA Today, 17 Jan. 2026
Its gorgeous new three-mile-long beachfront promenade is bound to draw more visitors, ready to laze on honeyed sands and gorge on fresh seafood plucked from the waters directly out front.
—Duncan Madden, Forbes.com, 16 Jan. 2026
That’s partly because the sands are slowly shifting in Washington.
—Lisa Hagen, Hartford Courant, 12 Jan. 2026
New details are emerging about a woman whose body was found on the sands of Hollywood Beach the day after Christmas.
—Joan Murray, Miami Herald, 10 Jan. 2026
By the second week of December, the driller reached a depth of 1,450 feet and struck oil sands.
—David Goldman, CNN Money, 5 Jan. 2026
Verb
Chapman sands his board occasionally to remove this top layer of funk.
—Matt Fuchs, Time, 24 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sands
Noun
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Explore tranquil marshland trails or relax on white-sand beaches.—
Elizabeth Rhodes,
Travel + Leisure,
10 Jan. 2026
-
If your annual drive to the beach involves more than a full day on the road, that predictability drops fast.—
Paul Cappiello,
Louisville Courier Journal,
9 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Dramatic silence after someone makes a comment that rubs them the wrong way.—
Valerie Mesa,
PEOPLE,
25 Dec. 2025
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Finally, with the boom of a cannon and the roar of the crowd, each team member and coach rubs Howard’s Rock for luck before hurtling down the hill toward the home sideline.—
Elizabeth Hutchison Hicklin,
Southern Living,
8 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Atmos annually files a request to redo its rates, and has previously cited infrastructure improvements as a reason for increasing costs.—
Devyani Chhetri,
Dallas Morning News,
20 Jan. 2026
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The District Attorney’s Office routinely files pretrial detention motions in cases involving these types of charges.—
Liza Esquibias,
PEOPLE,
13 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Use jelly polishes atop an opaque base!—
Rebecca Norris,
InStyle,
20 Jan. 2026
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The vacuum has a fluffy optic cleaner head that not only cleans but also polishes hard floors.—
Yelena Moroz Alpert,
Architectural Digest,
23 Dec. 2025
Verb
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This week’s strikes came as the conflict grinds through its fourth winter, plunging cities into prolonged energy blackouts while temperatures dip well below freezing and are forecast to drop further.—
Sophie Tanno,
CNN Money,
11 Jan. 2026
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But Kingstown grinds him up through the prison riots, through being fired from his job to accidentally being responsible for the death of his mother.—
Demetrius Patterson,
HollywoodReporter,
9 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Sands.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sands. Accessed 23 Jan. 2026.
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