Synonym Chooser

How is the word utensil different from other nouns like it?

Some common synonyms of utensil are appliance, implement, instrument, and tool. While all these words mean "a relatively simple device for performing work," utensil applies to a device used in domestic work or some routine unskilled activity.

kitchen utensils

When is appliance a more appropriate choice than utensil?

While the synonyms appliance and utensil are close in meaning, appliance refers to a tool or instrument utilizing a power source and suggests portability or temporary attachment.

household appliances

When would implement be a good substitute for utensil?

The words implement and utensil can be used in similar contexts, but implement may apply to anything necessary to perform a task.

crude stone implements
farm implements

When might instrument be a better fit than utensil?

While in some cases nearly identical to utensil, instrument suggests a device capable of delicate or precise work.

the dentist's instruments

How do tool and implement relate to one another, in the sense of utensil?

Tool suggests an implement adapted to facilitate a definite kind or stage of work and suggests the need of skill more strongly than implement.

a carpenter's tools

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 utensil Using separate cutting boards and utensils for raw and cooked meat, along with washing hands between cooking tasks, minimizes cross-contamination. Amanda Heidt, Scientific American, 18 June 2025 Take pauses: Put your eating utensils down between bites to create natural pauses. Brandi Jones, Verywell Health, 7 July 2025 The fix: Thoroughly wash and rinse all utensils, cutting boards, and equipment, especially after contact with raw meats and poultry, advised Buffer. Cathy Nelson, Health, 2 July 2025 Their interior side walls offer storage niche opportunities, or even the ability to integrate pull-out storage for spice racks or utensil storage. Lauren Bengtson, Better Homes & Gardens, 26 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for utensil
Recent Examples of Synonyms for utensil
Noun
  • The summary points above were compiled with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists in the Miami Herald newsroom.
    Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 19 July 2025
  • However, these tools often provide information that is completely inaccurate, and in the context of security, that can be dangerous.
    Staff, FOXNews.com, 19 July 2025
Noun
  • As the company has already done for decades, Apple would leave the messy internet mostly to others and focus instead on the device itself.
    Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 14 July 2025
  • The shoes-off policy began in 2006 after an incident in 2001, when Richard Reid attempted to detonate an explosive device built into his shoes on a flight from Paris to Miami.
    Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 14 July 2025
Noun
  • Some instruments were not in their standard positions, and these were not buttons that could be jostled out of place by an explosion: They were made to be handled by human fingers, which is apparently what happened after the blast.
    Alice George, Smithsonian Magazine, 18 July 2025
  • So Goodloe plugged in a Gibson 335, an instrument associated with Chuck Berry.
    Tom Roland, Billboard, 16 July 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Utensil.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/utensil. Accessed 24 Jul. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on utensil

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