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2
3
as in gleamed
to shoot forth bursts of light
fireflies winking in the darkness beyond our campfire
Synonyms & Similar Words
4
as in ignored
to secretly sympathize with or pretend ignorance of something improper or unlawful
the whole sporting world seems to wink as untold sums are bet on the outcome of the Super Bowl
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of winked
Sartorial outerwear crafted from archival fabrics mingled with pieces that winked to utility and workwear, with a few styles looking to balance these two souls in a single design, such as double wool hooded capes and coats.
—
Sandra Salibian, Footwear News, 2 Mar. 2026
Stayton then reportedly winked and told the protester they'd be charged with a felony.
—Jolene Almendarez, Cincinnati Enquirer, 12 Nov. 2025
Farther up, on Observatory Hill, tall cryptomeria trees were silhouetted in the darkening evening, and down in the valleys, lights winked on like reflections of the planets and stars appearing in the sky.
—Literary Hub, 27 Oct. 2025
The last ember of Rope A winked out.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2025
With both drugs, the alignment of brain waves shifted in similar ways as the animals’ consciousness waned and then winked out.
—Big Think, 20 Aug. 2025
Sandra Salibian, Footwear News, 2 Mar. 2026
Stayton then reportedly winked and told the protester they'd be charged with a felony.
—Jolene Almendarez, Cincinnati Enquirer, 12 Nov. 2025
Farther up, on Observatory Hill, tall cryptomeria trees were silhouetted in the darkening evening, and down in the valleys, lights winked on like reflections of the planets and stars appearing in the sky.
—Literary Hub, 27 Oct. 2025
The last ember of Rope A winked out.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2025
With both drugs, the alignment of brain waves shifted in similar ways as the animals’ consciousness waned and then winked out.
—Big Think, 20 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for winked
Verb
-
Talarico blinked and widened his eyes, gauging the room.—
Tad Friend,
New Yorker,
23 Feb. 2026
-
The emails show how easily some digital media figures and companies were taken advantage of; publications that were publishing hundreds of articles a day hardly blinked when a positive article about a financier showed up, or a serious-sounding foundation official asked for an image tweak.—
Max Tani,
semafor.com,
9 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Coakley’s eyes twinkled with a sense of pride.—
Michael Butler,
Miami Herald,
30 Jan. 2026
-
For his 2024 display, more than 900,000 lights twinkled and glowed around his property, so expect many more this season.—
Martha Ross,
Mercury News,
24 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
Another video shows Archie, 6, feeding a rhinoceros at the zoo while his red hair gleamed in the sunlight.—
Desiree Anello,
PEOPLE,
18 Jan. 2026
-
The china gleamed, the Waterford sparkled, and the silver was polished.—
Peter Folan,
Boston Herald,
27 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
The dog ignored him, and licked the boy’s face.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
5 Mar. 2026
-
The forward mix can’t be ignored.—
Eric Stephens,
New York Times,
5 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Giles cranked the boat back around, leaned out from behind the steering wheel and squinted past a bright glare on the water.—
Kelso Harper,
Scientific American,
16 Dec. 2025
-
Amid the eucalyptus groves at Natural Bridges State Beach in Santa Cruz, local bug enthusiast Sasha Hernandez squinted through the draping green leaves, searching for flashes of black and orange — the wings of migratory monarch butterflies traveling from west of the Rocky Mountains.—
Olivia Maule,
Mercury News,
6 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
That law does not say the driver’s license itself must be flashed.—
Jim Radcliffe,
Oc Register,
6 Mar. 2026
-
The interesting name in the mix is Elliss, a 22-year-old 2023 third-round pick who’s flashed big-time pass-rush potential when healthy but has been banged up through his two years in Denver.—
Luca Evans,
Denver Post,
4 Mar. 2026
Verb
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In 2023, astronomers reported that some of these satellites were already photobombing images captured by the Hubble Space Telescope, as sunlight glinted off their surfaces leaving bright trails that erase, obscure or mimic genuine cosmic signals.—
Sharmila Kuthunur,
Space.com,
12 Dec. 2025
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Chalk dust glinted like pollen or asbestos in the sunshine coming through the window.—
Rivka Galchen,
New Yorker,
21 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Candlelight flickered against vibrant tanzanite, sky blue topaz and canary yellow diamonds on Tuesday night at Sunset Tower Hotel, where Pomellato gathered brand ambassadors and celebrity stylists to mark the reopening of its Beverly Hills flagship, unveiled in October.—
Ryma Chikhoune,
Footwear News,
11 Feb. 2026
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Officers captured the scene using a drone, which showed the man balancing on the unicycle as flames flickered just feet from passing vehicles.—
Jasmine Baehr,
FOXNews.com,
8 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Winked.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/winked. Accessed 10 Mar. 2026.
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