stirred

verb

past tense of stir
1
as in swirled
to cause (as a liquid) to move about in a circle especially repeatedly the recipe says to stir the mixture carefully until it's properly blended

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in shifted
to change one's position the cat stirred, then opened its eyes and slowly got to its feet

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in provoked
to rouse to strong feeling or action news coverage of the fire stirred many to send donations to a fund for the families who had lost their homes

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 stirred That’s as economic hardship and long lines at gas stations have already stirred some fresh protests, though not at the massive scale that was seen in January. — Jason Ma, Fortune, 6 Sep. 2026 Nicolas Cage will take his vodka martini shaken, not stirred. — Marina Watts, Entertainment Weekly, 2 Sep. 2026 Flock’s license plate-reading cameras have stirred controversy across the state, with many raising privacy concerns. — Iris Kwok, Los Angeles Times, 1 Sep. 2026 An ongoing police investigation in Philadelphia's Olney section has stirred rumors and concerns of a potential serial killer, but some key information is missing before that claim can be correct. — Kaitlyn McCormick, USA Today, 31 Aug. 2026 The debate has stirred deep divisions among the public over whether she should be held criminally responsible for the January 2023 killings. — Michael Casey, Chicago Tribune, 27 Aug. 2026 The rice is stirred over medium heat for a few minutes, giving the grains time to become opaque or lightly golden and release a toasty, nutty aroma. — Katie Rosenhouse, Southern Living, 26 Aug. 2026 And when they are baked the berries that are stirred into the batter bring additional sweetness and pizzazz. — Cathy Thomas, Oc Register, 25 Aug. 2026 Race was not a focus of the arguments made to the jury, but the case has stirred racial tensions in the community, with the families and attorneys on both sides receiving threats. — Lillie Davidson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 23 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stirred
  1. swirled
  2. shifted
  3. provoked
  4. washed
  5. moved
  6. encouraged
  7. shook
  8. stimulated
Verb
  • Over the weekend, rumors swirled that Anthropic was on the cusp of announcing that one of its AI models had cracked one of the Millennium Prize Problems.
    — Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 8 Sep. 2026
  • Bethany Donaphin Head of WNBA league operations As rumors swirled about Engelbert’s enture, insiders around the league have been mentioning Donaphin as a potential replacement.
    — Chantel Jennings, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of swirled
Verb
  • How the rule will work in practice shifted between when the memorandum of understanding was signed and what’s in the new CBA.
    — Chris Johnston, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026
  • Still, the threats have increased for the islands of Niihau and Kauai because the storm's forecast track has shifted steadily eastward, the National Hurricane Center said.
    — Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA Today, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of shifted
Verb
  • Taiwan’s attendance at summits has provoked China's ire before, with the issue resulting in partner countries being barred from attending last year’s meeting in Solomon Islands.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 1 Sep. 2026
  • In the second half of 2025, LinkedIn removed 477,911 comments that provoked harassment or abuse and 80,806 comments that used adult language or imagery using its harmful message detector, according to LinkedIn’s transparency report.
    — Sarah Glodek, Fortune, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of provoked
Verb
  • Linen, washed cotton, lightweight knits, and silk all have a natural ease to them that works beautifully on vacation.
    — Elly Leavitt, Vogue, 3 Sep. 2026
  • In many cases, bodies have been washed far downstream and rendered unrecognizable, while others still missing are feared to have been buried in the torrent of thick mud.
    — Andrew Jones, NBC news, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of washed
Verb
  • Michigan was 80 yards from the end zone with 10 seconds remaining and hadn’t moved the ball at all since its first drive.
    — Austin Meek, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2026
  • Had moved from my very small town in northern Va to the big city of Richmond to begin my new career as a management trainee with a local bank at the princely sum of $11,000 per year at age 22.
    — Joe Kinsey OutKick, FOXNews.com, 5 Sep. 2026
Definition of moved
Verb
  • More than a decade ago, the two researchers were introduced by their mutual boss, the chancellor at UCSF, who encouraged them to collaborate.
    — Pien Huang, NPR, 4 Sep. 2026
  • As Brown ramped back up this summer, he and the team were encouraged by his progress.
    — Sahadev Sharma, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of encouraged
Verb
  • The offence that shook baseball in October appeared again, leading the Jays to their second-largest margin of victory this year in an 11-0 win against the Cleveland Guardians.
    — Mitch Bannon, New York Times, 3 Sep. 2026
  • Several heavy explosions shook Kuhestak, with fireballs that lighted up the night sky, according to security camera recordings carried by the semiofficial news agency Fars.
    — David Rising, Los Angeles Times, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of shook
Verb
  • Throughout Milo's healing, Haarburger sought ways to keep him entertained and mentally stimulated.
    — Kelsey Legg, ABC News, 24 Aug. 2026
  • So the majority of product [is] stimulated by patient interaction, and the hero product has to be the Polish.
    — Rachel Burchfield, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026
Definition of stimulated

Browse Nearby Words

stir
stirred
stirred (up)
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Stirred.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stirred. Accessed 11 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of patina

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Words from the 'Odyssey'

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
anagrams on a chalk board
Word Builder Quiz Vol. 2 Pick the letter that when added to a word will ma...
See All