vanilla

adjective

Definition of vanillanext
as in boring
lacking in distinctive features or qualities a plain vanilla version of a song that's been recorded more times than necessary

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

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 vanilla The court has ruled that the companies must develop a new product formula that does not include vanilla derived from non-vanilla plant sources within 12 months of the settlement’s finalization, according to the news release. — Saleen Martin, USA TODAY, 30 Sep. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for vanilla
  1. boring
  2. neutral
  3. beige
  4. nondescript
  5. featureless
Adjective
  • Jasmine[‘s character] has a husband, a daughter, a boring life sometimes.
    — Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 10 Sep. 2026
  • These recipes for muffins, snack mix, energy balls and more are proof that eating better doesn’t have to be boring, regardless of age.
    — Anna Luisa Rodriguez, Washington Post, 5 Sep. 2026
Definition of boring
Adjective
  • Since then, the Big Ten has appointed a neutral clock operator, instead of one appointed by the home team.
    — Austin Meek, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2026
  • Winfrey has a more subdued take on footwear, her choices consisting of neutral tones with the occasional leopard or snakeskin.
    — Amina Ayoud, Footwear News, 6 Sep. 2026
Definition of neutral
Adjective
  • The jail, a beige 12-story obelisk, overlooks all of downtown Las Vegas – a Bosch-in-the-sunbelt panorama.
    — Jeff Weiss, HollywoodReporter, 5 Sep. 2026
  • Contrast a more vibrant ensemble with a neutral shoe shade like white or beige to ground your look.
    — Daisy Maldonado, InStyle, 5 Sep. 2026
Definition of beige
Adjective
  • From the outside, the building looks like a bunker, camouflaged amid a block of nondescript offices.
    — Cora Engelbrecht, New Yorker, 24 Aug. 2026
  • In the corner of a nondescript office in Sheffield, a city in the north of England, a compact server full of Nvidia chips is whirring away.
    — Billy Perrigo, Time, 17 Aug. 2026
Definition of nondescript
Adjective
  • Shooting in a widescreen format that gives ironic grandeur to a squat, featureless town in the Texas Panhandle, DP Peter Flinckenberg is attentive to the piercing, sometimes radiant winter light of the region in the harshest months of the year.
    — Guy Lodge, Variety, 1 Sep. 2026
  • The metal underneath In their last experiment, the team built a plate that was quartz on two-thirds and copper on the other third, then coated the whole thing with a single uniform layer of Teflon that provided a featureless surface.
    — Jacek Krywko, ArsTechnica, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of featureless

Browse Nearby Words

vanguards
vanilla
vanish
See all Nearby Words

Podcast

Theme music by Joshua Stamper ©2006 New Jerusalem Music/ASCAP

Cite this Entry

“Vanilla.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/vanilla. Accessed 12 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on vanilla

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about vanilla

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 hobnob

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
funny guinea pig in glasses reading a book
Challenging Words You Should Know Vol 2 Words to the wise
See All