1
as in incantations
a spoken word or set of words believed to have magic power
the witch cast a spell that turned the prince into a toad
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in bouts
a sudden experiencing of a physical or mental disorder
a dizzy spell that caused me to fall
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in whiles
an indefinite but usually short period of time
come rest a spell
Synonyms & Similar Words
1
as in possesses
to cast a spell on
it was as if he had spelled the public into believing his ridiculous claims
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in means
to communicate or convey (as an idea) to the mind
that summertime combination of hot temperatures and equally hot tempers can spell trouble
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of spells
Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 2 Oct. 2025
Defender Moïse Bombito and winger Liam Millar both have returned after lengthy injury spells for important friendlies against Australia, ranked 25th in the world by FIFA, and Colombia, ranked 13th.
—Joshua Kloke, New York Times, 30 Sep. 2025
Beckham's team up with Verizon is just one of the many ventures he's taken part in since hanging up his jersey in May 2013 after his 21-year career playing for Manchester United, Preston North End (on loan), Real Madrid, AC Milan (loan spells), LA Galaxy and Paris Saint-Germain.
—Skyler Caruso, PEOPLE, 30 Sep. 2025
There were also tough spells during which the KC bats just couldn’t get anything going.
—Kansas City Star, 28 Sep. 2025
Like most Final Fantasy titles, Tactics’ story is wholly disconnected from the rest of the franchise, but has many of the same elements, like magic spells called Fire, Blizzard, and Thunder, or the existence of the giant bipedal birds called Chocobos.
—Hayes Madsen, Rolling Stone, 24 Sep. 2025
Abdel-Fattah is a veteran democracy campaigner who first served spells in detention before the 2011 revolution that toppled President Hosni Mubarak and gave hope to a generation of activists in Egypt and beyond.
—Reuters, NBC news, 22 Sep. 2025
The Upper Peninsula and northern Michigan could see frequent rain, drizzle, and early snow with warm spells later in the month.
—Sarah Moore, Freep.com, 16 Sep. 2025
The Netflix subsidiary behind the first and the third seasons of The Witcher was called Hocus Pocus Productions in a nod to the spells at the heart of the story.
—Caroline Reid, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025
Steven Louis Goldstein, New York Times, 1 Oct. 2025
Defeat usually spells the end for the captain, especially if the loss is by a wide margin.
—Julio Cesar Valdera Morales, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Sep. 2025
That spells disaster, says Douglas Webber, emeritus professor of political science at the international business school lNSEAD, south of Paris.
—Eleanor Beardsley, NPR, 9 Sep. 2025
And experts tell Fortune that spells a lot of trouble for innovation and long-term business stability.
—Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 7 Sep. 2025
Look, here is Iain, who spells his name the proper way, has a mullet, and is from Northern Ireland.
—Brian Moylan, Vulture, 5 Sep. 2025
Its songs are stacked with nods to John the Conqueror root (a plant that’s thought to enhance luck), and spells to bring back a lover.
—Danielle Amir Jackson, The Atlantic, 4 Sep. 2025
When a mother tree is felled, the survival rate of many of its seedlings may be drastically reduced, a process not unlike the reciprocal feedback loop of Yggdrasill, whose deterioration in response to discord in the nine realms spells cosmic collapse.
—Ellen Walker, JSTOR Daily, 3 Sep. 2025
Most of the stations of Faithfull’s cross also get visited here, including the overdoses and struggles with addiction, breakups, a miscarried child, and spells when she was clearly being exploited by others who were happy to use her notoriety to their own advantage.
—Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 31 Aug. 2025
Noun
The new study examined multiple measures of labor market disruption, drawing on Bureau of Labor Statistics data on job losses, spells of unemployment, and shifts in broader occupational composition.
—Eva Roytburg, Fortune, 2 Oct. 2025
Defender Moïse Bombito and winger Liam Millar both have returned after lengthy injury spells for important friendlies against Australia, ranked 25th in the world by FIFA, and Colombia, ranked 13th.
—Joshua Kloke, New York Times, 30 Sep. 2025
Beckham's team up with Verizon is just one of the many ventures he's taken part in since hanging up his jersey in May 2013 after his 21-year career playing for Manchester United, Preston North End (on loan), Real Madrid, AC Milan (loan spells), LA Galaxy and Paris Saint-Germain.
—Skyler Caruso, PEOPLE, 30 Sep. 2025
There were also tough spells during which the KC bats just couldn’t get anything going.
—Kansas City Star, 28 Sep. 2025
Like most Final Fantasy titles, Tactics’ story is wholly disconnected from the rest of the franchise, but has many of the same elements, like magic spells called Fire, Blizzard, and Thunder, or the existence of the giant bipedal birds called Chocobos.
—Hayes Madsen, Rolling Stone, 24 Sep. 2025
Abdel-Fattah is a veteran democracy campaigner who first served spells in detention before the 2011 revolution that toppled President Hosni Mubarak and gave hope to a generation of activists in Egypt and beyond.
—Reuters, NBC news, 22 Sep. 2025
The Upper Peninsula and northern Michigan could see frequent rain, drizzle, and early snow with warm spells later in the month.
—Sarah Moore, Freep.com, 16 Sep. 2025
The Netflix subsidiary behind the first and the third seasons of The Witcher was called Hocus Pocus Productions in a nod to the spells at the heart of the story.
—Caroline Reid, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025
Verb
Sam Houston is 0-4 (bad), but the program spells Bearkats with a k (good).
—Steven Louis Goldstein, New York Times, 1 Oct. 2025
Defeat usually spells the end for the captain, especially if the loss is by a wide margin.
—Julio Cesar Valdera Morales, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Sep. 2025
That spells disaster, says Douglas Webber, emeritus professor of political science at the international business school lNSEAD, south of Paris.
—Eleanor Beardsley, NPR, 9 Sep. 2025
And experts tell Fortune that spells a lot of trouble for innovation and long-term business stability.
—Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 7 Sep. 2025
Look, here is Iain, who spells his name the proper way, has a mullet, and is from Northern Ireland.
—Brian Moylan, Vulture, 5 Sep. 2025
Its songs are stacked with nods to John the Conqueror root (a plant that’s thought to enhance luck), and spells to bring back a lover.
—Danielle Amir Jackson, The Atlantic, 4 Sep. 2025
When a mother tree is felled, the survival rate of many of its seedlings may be drastically reduced, a process not unlike the reciprocal feedback loop of Yggdrasill, whose deterioration in response to discord in the nine realms spells cosmic collapse.
—Ellen Walker, JSTOR Daily, 3 Sep. 2025
Most of the stations of Faithfull’s cross also get visited here, including the overdoses and struggles with addiction, breakups, a miscarried child, and spells when she was clearly being exploited by others who were happy to use her notoriety to their own advantage.
—Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 31 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spells
Noun
-
There’s a little bit of mystery with the spirits, incantations and rituals.—
Chris Gardner,
HollywoodReporter,
4 Aug. 2025
Noun
-
The bouts will be available on Paramount+ with the potential for select events to be simulcast on CBS and other Paramount platforms.—
Jill Goldsmith,
Deadline,
29 Sep. 2025
-
Only 22% of kids did moderate-to-vigorous exercise before bed, in rare, short bouts.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
28 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The curse is a vengeful spirit that possesses a person in a powerful rage before claiming their life and spreading to another victim.—
Caitlin White,
Variety,
3 Oct. 2025
-
Diouf, the summer signing from Slavia Prague, possesses brilliant crossing ability and his creative finery has caught the eye, while Summerville’s unpredictability in possession made Everton’s makeshift full-back Jake O’Brien endure a tough night.—
Roshane Thomas,
New York Times,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
That means Swift incorporated a portion of the pop classic's composition into her version, in this case the melody and beginning chorus lyrics.—
Bryan West,
USA Today,
3 Oct. 2025
-
That means anyone who pays for health insurance coverage, including for plans offered through their employer, will see higher monthly premiums.—
Beth Warren,
Nashville Tennessean,
3 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
In most attacks, bears are trying to defend their food, cubs or space.—
Daniella Segura,
Idaho Statesman,
2 Oct. 2025
-
Kurt's key takeaway The fact that Chrome has already faced six zero-day attacks this year shows how relentless attackers are and how even the most popular software can have serious gaps.—
Kurt Knutsson,
FOXNews.com,
2 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Tutu Atwell’s role is perplexing Every fan base has some trademark bits.—
Nate Atkins,
New York Times,
1 Oct. 2025
-
The new Galactic Brownie flavor combines brownie batter ice cream, gooey brownie bits, creamy chocolate icing swirls, and rainbow chips that dazzle like the stars in the Milky Way.—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Liam Perino curses in front of his parents.—
Matthew Shen Goodman,
Harpers Magazine,
19 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The later disruption of those railroad networks signifies the country’s economic decline in the early twentieth century.—
Edna Bonhomme,
Artforum,
1 Oct. 2025
-
This reading, which signifies the biggest drop since March 2023, takes on even greater importance now that there's an economic data blackout because of the shutdown.—
Sean Conlon,Pia Singh,
CNBC,
30 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Spells.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spells. Accessed 7 Oct. 2025.
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