1
as in cramps
a painful sudden tightening of a muscle
he suffers terribly from back spasms
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in bursts
a sudden intense expression of strong feeling
a spasm of love that he had never experienced before
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of spasms
Moments later, the spasms began.
—
Sean Williams, Outside, 27 Oct. 2025
Edwards was questionable ahead of the season opener in Portland with back spasms, but played and scored 41 points against the Blazers.
—Jace Frederick, Twin Cities, 26 Oct. 2025
About 1% of the US population has axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA), a rare form of inflammatory arthritis that can cause severe joint pain, muscle spasms, stiffness, and discomfort throughout the body.
—Cheyenne Buckingham, SELF, 24 Oct. 2025
Reid said right guard Trey Smith would miss the day’s session due to back spasms.
—Pete Sweeney, Kansas City Star, 23 Oct. 2025
On Tuesday evening, the team updated the injury status of All-Star shooting guard Anthony Edwards, listing him as questionable to take the court with back spasms.
—Matt Audilet, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 Oct. 2025
Threw five gutsy innings in Game 7 of the 2019 World Series after overcoming painful spasms in his neck and upper right trapezius.
—Ken Rosenthal, New York Times, 17 Oct. 2025
Wright said Ad Land’s contribution to paying off the annual rights bill has been remarkably consistent over the last 10 years, holding steady at around that 50% mark despite a range of marketplace disruptions and various spasms at the macroeconomic level.
—Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 16 Oct. 2025
Ask your doctor about over-the-counter or prescription medication options to help manage pain and spasms.
—Jakob Roze, Health, 14 Oct. 2025
Sean Williams, Outside, 27 Oct. 2025
Edwards was questionable ahead of the season opener in Portland with back spasms, but played and scored 41 points against the Blazers.
—Jace Frederick, Twin Cities, 26 Oct. 2025
About 1% of the US population has axial spondyloarthritis (axSpA), a rare form of inflammatory arthritis that can cause severe joint pain, muscle spasms, stiffness, and discomfort throughout the body.
—Cheyenne Buckingham, SELF, 24 Oct. 2025
Reid said right guard Trey Smith would miss the day’s session due to back spasms.
—Pete Sweeney, Kansas City Star, 23 Oct. 2025
On Tuesday evening, the team updated the injury status of All-Star shooting guard Anthony Edwards, listing him as questionable to take the court with back spasms.
—Matt Audilet, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 Oct. 2025
Threw five gutsy innings in Game 7 of the 2019 World Series after overcoming painful spasms in his neck and upper right trapezius.
—Ken Rosenthal, New York Times, 17 Oct. 2025
Wright said Ad Land’s contribution to paying off the annual rights bill has been remarkably consistent over the last 10 years, holding steady at around that 50% mark despite a range of marketplace disruptions and various spasms at the macroeconomic level.
—Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 16 Oct. 2025
Ask your doctor about over-the-counter or prescription medication options to help manage pain and spasms.
—Jakob Roze, Health, 14 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spasms
Noun
-
Kansas Jayhawks freshman point guard Darryn Peterson, who played just five minutes in the second half of KU’s Monday season opener against Green Bay because of a recurring bout with cramps, practiced Tuesday night and again Wednesday.—
Gary Bedore,
Kansas City Star,
5 Nov. 2025
-
Symptoms may include diarrhea, cramps, nausea, headaches or other ailments.—
Anna Skinner,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Fortunately, Marty, posing as a federal agent here to arrest Lee for harassment, bursts through the One Well doors in the nick of time.—
Amanda Whiting,
Vulture,
5 Nov. 2025
-
These collisions unleash bursts of energy, allowing physicists to explore the most fundamental building blocks of the universe.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
4 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
The children grow before the camera’s eye, taking their first steps and speaking their first words to the backdrop of explosions—moving from tent to tent, clinging to life, and longing for their mother’s embrace.—
Leo Barraclough,
Variety,
10 Nov. 2025
-
For soldiers caught in explosions, survival often comes at a steep physical cost.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
10 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
These outbursts send radiation and charged particles hurling into space and can disrupt communications on Earth if the flare erupts from an Earth-facing sunspot.—
Daisy Dobrijevic,
Space.com,
5 Nov. 2025
-
Musk, whose partisan outbursts reportedly cost Tesla one million sales, remains the world’s wealthiest person, and could become the first-ever trillionaire.—
Allison Morrow,
CNN Money,
30 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Several eruptions of energy from the sun, known as coronal mass ejections, or CMEs, are expected to reach Earth’s magnetic field over the next two nights.—
Briana Waxman,
CNN Money,
12 Nov. 2025
-
Hazards from eruptions at Kilauea include high levels of volcanic gas, ash, pumice, scoria and reticulite and Pele's hair -- strands of volcanic glass produced by lava fountaining that can be carried more than 10 miles from the vent, according to the USGS.—
Julia Jacobo,
ABC News,
10 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Head coach Kalen DeBoer said the offense has shown flashes but needs better timing to fully capitalize.—
Grant Afseth,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Nov. 2025
-
Goodwin, signed late in the season from Australia, showed flashes in his brief playoff action.—
Colin Cerniglia,
Charlotte Observer,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Residents can look for wind gusts of up to 40 mph.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
8 Nov. 2025
-
West northwest wind 9 to 14 mph, with gusts as high as 25 mph.—
John Tufts,
IndyStar,
7 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Spasms.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spasms. Accessed 21 Nov. 2025.
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