spates

noun

plural of spate
1
as in floods
a great flow of water or of something that overwhelms a spate of words has been published on this controversial topic

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in loads
a considerable amount an off-color remark that drew a spate of complaints from TV viewers

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 spates Markets also have been wavering from spates of heavy selling of stocks in companies linked to the boom in artificial intelligence. — ABC News, 10 June 2026 When spates of violence like that occur, Norman said the department increases patrols in that area, drawing on resources from outside the area to do so. — David Clarey, jsonline.com, 28 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spates
  1. floods
  2. loads
  3. torrents
  4. dozens
  5. tons
  6. piles
  7. deals
  8. hundreds
Noun
  • The pitch often floods after heavy rain; winter fixtures are often cancelled.
    — Vanda Mayer, New Yorker, 6 Oct. 2026
  • Boulder argued the companies and a trade group knew decades ago that fossil fuels would hurt the environment, raising the risk of floods, extreme heat and wildfires.
    — Carrie Johnson, NPR, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of floods
Noun
  • This is the kind of test that quickly separates a power station that merely has an impressive number printed on its case from one with an inverter and battery management system capable of handling tough, real-world loads.
    — Michael Lydick, PC Magazine, 9 Oct. 2026
  • Data collected from the test rig could allow manufacturers to design heat pumps and heat exchangers for high temperatures, large loads, and changing conditions.
    — Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of loads
Noun
  • Few of her words survived the torrents of sound in which they were immersed; as with certain Grouper recordings, the lyrics emerged as texture more than syntax.
    — Sasha Geffen, Pitchfork, 8 Oct. 2026
  • Such terrain is already conducive to flash flooding, sudden torrents that can sweep down canyons and other low-lying areas with little warning.
    — Megan Janetsky, Chicago Tribune, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of torrents
Noun
  • For Le Labo, Deborah Royer, global brand president and creative director, said the brand still operates with the mindset of an indie — even a dozen years post-acquisition.
    — Kathryn Hopkins, Footwear News, 9 Oct. 2026
  • Israeli strikes in northern and southern Gaza killed three Palestinians and wounded at least a dozen others, according to health officials at Gaza hospitals.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of dozens
Noun
  • According to Colombian police accounts cited by El Tiempo, Pulido coordinated the shipment of approximately two tons of cocaine and 17 kilograms of heroin to Europe in 1999.
    — Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 12 Oct. 2026
  • Moscow — By agreeing to open Russia’s taps and release hundreds of thousands of tons of diesel into a starving global market, the Kremlin has achieved something that raw military might on the battlefields of eastern Ukraine could never deliver.
    — Matthew Chance, CNN Money, 11 Oct. 2026
Definition of tons
Noun
  • The Rest and Relax Inn in Pensacola, Florida, was surrounded by piles of debris after it was stripped of roofing materials during a heavy hit from the hurricane last night.
    — Erika Angulo, NBC news, 11 Oct. 2026
  • Pictures show divers working among piles of ancient pottery, with ceramic plates and bowls scattered across the sandy seabed.
    — Andrea Margolis, FOXNews.com, 9 Oct. 2026
Definition of piles
Noun
  • While most of its Prime Day deals have been removed, some highly effective ThinkPad business portables can still be had for cheap, along with a solid Chromebook and some monitors.
    — K. Thor Jensen, PC Magazine, 8 Oct. 2026
  • Playful dinnerware and elegant barware are marked down as part of the post-Prime Day deals.
    — Audrey Lee, Architectural Digest, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of deals
Noun
  • As a major bloc that has been able to apply pressure, the union has thwarted several efforts by Mamdani’s predecessors to ban the attraction, as hundreds of carriage operators make a living operating the buggies.
    — Claire Carter, The Washington Examiner, 14 Oct. 2026
  • The Paris prosecutor’s office opened an investigation on Monday into an overnight cyberattack on refrigeration systems at hundreds of French supermarkets.
    — Miranda Jeyaretnam, Time, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of hundreds

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Cite this Entry

“Spates.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spates. Accessed 15 Oct. 2026.

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