1
as in aching
causing or feeling bodily pain
my legs are sore after that long walk yesterday
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in angry
feeling or showing anger
promise not to get sore if I tell you what I really think of your new hairstyle?
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in cynical
having or showing deep-seated resentment
he's been sore ever since she insulted him
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in terribly
to a great degree
I was sore afraid we'd never make it home
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in swelling
Related Words
Dissimilar 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 sore
Jenelle Riley, Variety, 1 May 2025
This can slow down healing and potentially spread the sores to other parts of your body.4
Prevention
Getting the mpox vaccine, known as JYNNEOS, can help prevent mpox.
—Francisco J. Rivera Rosario, Health, 7 June 2025
Hallie Milstein, Southern Living, 14 June 2025
Shop the best running shoes for shin splints Tight, sore shins don’t have to throw you off—not with these plush, supportive sneaks.
—Sara Coughlin, SELF, 5 June 2025
James Boyd, The Indianapolis Star, 25 Mar. 2022
Eventually, an infection in the sore reached Figueroa’s hip bone.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 5 Oct. 2023
See All Example Sentences for sore
Adjective
The Cholera Ghosts all began as pretty much an entity of nameless specters covered in sores who aren’t accepted in the main house, but that didn’t stop Sodaro from building a whole character biography.
—Jenelle Riley, Variety, 1 May 2025
This can slow down healing and potentially spread the sores to other parts of your body.4
Prevention
Getting the mpox vaccine, known as JYNNEOS, can help prevent mpox.
—Francisco J. Rivera Rosario, Health, 7 June 2025
Adverb
People who live in the home and have grown used to the set-up of a room may not notice these aspects, but a designer’s keen eyes can’t help but have tunnel-vision towards these things that either make a room special or stand out like a sore thumb.
—Hallie Milstein, Southern Living, 14 June 2025
Shop the best running shoes for shin splints Tight, sore shins don’t have to throw you off—not with these plush, supportive sneaks.
—Sara Coughlin, SELF, 5 June 2025
Noun
Starting guard Malcolm Brogdon (rest), rookies Chris Duarte (sore left big toe) and Isaiah Jackson (headache), and second-year center Jalen Smith (illness) were out as well, making a tough game even tougher.
—James Boyd, The Indianapolis Star, 25 Mar. 2022
Eventually, an infection in the sore reached Figueroa’s hip bone.
—Sarah Kuta, Smithsonian Magazine, 5 Oct. 2023
See All Example Sentences for sore
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sore
Adjective
-
Coupled with a story line about digital avatars who seek to replace the humans in whose images they were shaped, the movie possesses an aching sense of oblivion.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
27 June 2025
-
Indeed, Macron has zipped furiously across Europe, the Middle East, and Asia all year, negotiating deals on climate, trade, military assistance, and peace, some of it in an effort to fill an aching vacuum left by Washington.—
Vivienne Walt,
Time,
10 June 2025
Adjective
-
Without Flagg, asking angry fans for more money may have sent Welts back into another round of retirement.—
Mac Engel,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
26 June 2025
-
Republican lawmakers were also angry when the Southern Association warned that a 2021 presidential search at Florida State University may violate accrediting standards.—
Scott Travis,
Sun Sentinel,
26 June 2025
Adjective
-
Mamdani proposes to pay for these splendid gifts to the city’s voters by raising taxes even further on the city’s top income earners, in the cynical belief that those who make up his tax base are stuck there, cannot flee, and are thus cows to be helplessly milked.—
The Editors,
National Review,
25 June 2025
-
Too often, leaders are stuck between moral maximalism and cynical cost-cutting.—
HEC Paris Insights,
Forbes.com,
25 June 2025
Adverb
-
To the surprise of no one, something has gone terribly wrong.—
Fran Ruiz,
Space.com,
24 June 2025
-
Then in April 2021, Granda’s plan to escape went terribly wrong.—
Charles Rabin,
Miami Herald,
24 June 2025
Noun
-
Studies show postmenopausal women, particularly those with early menopause, may be at higher risk for rheumatoid arthritis, a long-term condition that causes pain, swelling and stiffness in the joints.—
Karina Zaiets,
USA Today,
30 June 2025
-
When left alone, these locally aggressive tumors can grow massive, causing pain, swelling and even organ dysfunction.—
Alexis Kayser,
MSNBC Newsweek,
28 June 2025
Noun
-
This raises the risk of a host of complications that could impact your belly button, including both bacterial skin infections and viral infections, like warts or cold sores.—
Korin Miller,
SELF,
11 June 2025
-
This can predispose to viral infections like warts and conditions like molluscum contagiosum – small, firm, dome-like bumps.—
Jesse Pines,
Forbes.com,
13 June 2025
Adjective
-
Once Schaefer’s emotional moment was done, the rest of the conversations ranged from mildly awkward to borderline painful.—
Sean McIndoe,
New York Times,
28 June 2025
-
Their venom, similar to a bee’s or wasp’s, results in a painful, itchy pustule or blister on the skin.—
Gareth McGrath,
USA Today,
28 June 2025
Adjective
-
In a memorable photo from a G-7 summit during his first term, the U.S. president sat, arms crossed, glaring at an indignant German Chancellor Angela Merkel.—
JENNIFER LIND,
Foreign Affairs,
24 June 2025
-
Facing this deluge of information and personalities, Kelley’s Fact Checker is less indignant and sure-footed than Fingal, and in this uncertainty takes an important next step.—
Isabel Clara Ruehl
June 16,
Literary Hub,
16 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Sore.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sore. Accessed 5 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share