as in tangle
something that catches and holds
a married woman hopelessly caught in the toils of an extramarital affair
Synonyms & Similar Words
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as in labors
to devote serious and sustained effort
toiled for many years on the mammoth outdoor sculpture
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of toils
Jacob Tanswell, New York Times, 23 Oct. 2025
Molly Parks, The Washington Examiner, 17 Oct. 2025
The film unfolds from the perspective of an eight-year-old girl named Qing (Aline Chen), who lives and works the land with her mother, Hongmei (Li Yanxi), while her father toils in a factory in a faraway city.
—Patrick Brzeski, HollywoodReporter, 19 Sep. 2025
Noun
How Tielemans overcame early toils is often used as a source of encouragement by new additions who seem peripheral at first.
—Jacob Tanswell, New York Times, 23 Oct. 2025
Verb
Several Democratic incumbents are seeing their young primary opponents boast impressive fundraising numbers as the party toils between placing its faith in its incumbent establishment or in a future featuring younger, more progressive candidates.
—Molly Parks, The Washington Examiner, 17 Oct. 2025
The film unfolds from the perspective of an eight-year-old girl named Qing (Aline Chen), who lives and works the land with her mother, Hongmei (Li Yanxi), while her father toils in a factory in a faraway city.
—Patrick Brzeski, HollywoodReporter, 19 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for toils
Noun
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His mind is a tangle of occult connections, a rat king of red thread.—
Hari Kunzru,
Harpers Magazine,
27 Jan. 2026
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One order of cioppino allegedly feeds two people but could sustain a family of four, packed with exclusively shellfish, including a tangle of Dungeness crab legs, squid tentacles, and petite shrimp.—
Becky Duffett,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
27 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Some people even shared old photos of Indigenous peoples wearing the hoods, noting that the originators of the design kept the fur outward to break cold wind and trap snow.—
Rachel Raposas,
PEOPLE,
9 Jan. 2026
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At one point, a trap even caught the wrong bear.—
Bonny Chu,
FOXNews.com,
9 Jan. 2026
Verb
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In the movie, Redford plays Roy Hobbs, who struggles his entire life to get a shot at playing professional baseball — a transformation of Arthurian legend into mythic Americana.—
Mark Olsen,
Los Angeles Times,
30 Jan. 2026
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Raymond James analysts upgraded the stock to an outperform rating, citing Sandisk's pricing momentum as new supply struggles to come online.—
Samantha Subin,
CNBC,
30 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Now, the Iranian government has made strides towards more broadly implementing technology that allows only people with security clearance to access the international web, Rashidi told CNN.—
Lauren Kent,
CNN Money,
30 Jan. 2026
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The material, which appeared on dark-web forums, reportedly included the agency's proprietary software, authorization credentials and internal project documentation.—
Sharmila Kuthunur,
Space.com,
30 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Gensert stressed that while RideSD is a voice for young transit riders, the group strives to represent everyone who uses transit.—
David Garrick,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
18 Jan. 2026
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Using the power of humour, music and entertainment, Em’s work strives to affect audiences who may not usually engage with ocean conservation.—
Mandeep Rai,
Forbes.com,
16 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Establishing a rare closeness of the finishing-each-other’s-sentences kind, the duo truly embrace the immersive feeling of being one half of that singular, irreplaceably defining friendship of the teen years, one that often feels like a high-stakes romantic entanglement.—
Tomris Laffly,
Variety,
24 Jan. 2026
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Contracts, loan agreements, and other financial entanglements could be the focal point of such discussions.—
Tarot.com,
Sun Sentinel,
22 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Throughout the novel, Nikki works tirelessly to prove herself amongst industry male figureheads who don’t value her voice, personhood, and brilliance, while managing pressure from a boss who isn't her advocate and navigating challenging colleagues steeped in misogyny and who are power-hungry.—
Dominique Fluker,
Forbes.com,
27 Jan. 2026
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But that’s not how state terror works.—
M. Gessen,
Mercury News,
27 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The team gathered their marten data via 285 hair snares (made from PVC pipe) and 135 cameras.—
Laura Baisas,
Popular Science,
22 Jan. 2026
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Its graphic clarity teems with ornament and glitter, visual intoxications that signal delusions and snares.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
17 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Toils.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/toils. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
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