zeal

Synonym Chooser

How does the noun zeal differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of zeal are ardor, enthusiasm, fervor, and passion. While all these words mean "intense emotion compelling action," zeal implies energetic and unflagging pursuit of an aim or devotion to a cause.

preaches with fanatical zeal

When is ardor a more appropriate choice than zeal?

While in some cases nearly identical to zeal, ardor suggests warm and excited feeling likely to be fitful or short-lived.

the ardor of their honeymoon soon faded

Where would enthusiasm be a reasonable alternative to zeal?

The words enthusiasm and zeal can be used in similar contexts, but enthusiasm applies to lively or eager interest in or admiration for a proposal, cause, or activity.

never showed much enthusiasm for sports

When could fervor be used to replace zeal?

While the synonyms fervor and zeal are close in meaning, fervor implies a warm and steady emotion.

read the poem aloud with great fervor

When can passion be used instead of zeal?

The synonyms passion and zeal are sometimes interchangeable, but passion applies to an emotion that is deeply stirring or ungovernable.

was a slave to his passions

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 zeal Madigan’s defense team has long argued that prosecutors, in their zeal to reel in the ultimate fish, were trying to criminalize the kind of legal political horse trading, from job recommendations to board appointments, that occur in politics on a daily basis. Jason Meisner, Chicago Tribune, 12 June 2025 On the last day of school, the two girls are busy resolving student-council-budget issues—only to be jolted into questioning their rule-following zeal. Hillary Kelly, The Atlantic, 6 June 2025 Stewart palpably delights in the button-pushing frankness of it all, and in exposing so many of the things that women are told to keep hidden (many of them considerably less fun than an orgasm), but her confrontational zeal always runs second to the fluidity of her feeling. David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 16 May 2025 Deregulation While congressional action obviously is required to eliminate agencies and enabling statutes outright, legitimate deregulation can begin with the same zeal that created overregulation. Clyde Wayne Crews Jr, Forbes.com, 12 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for zeal
Recent Examples of Synonyms for zeal
Noun
  • Severe and repeated cases of scale can cause branches to die and reduce a tree’s overall vigor.
    Tim Johnson, Chicago Tribune, 6 Apr. 2025
  • As Zidler, Petkoff portrays with vigor a self-serving weasel, albeit with a heart.
    Rick Mauch, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 11 June 2025
Noun
  • Imagine telling any of the women in that hairdressers shop that art should be untouched by national and political passion, particularly in time of war.
    Kamila Shamsie June 20, Literary Hub, 20 June 2025
  • Dear Abby: In the four years my husband and I have been married, his distaste for the LGBTQ community has grown into a passion.
    Abigail Van Buren, Boston Herald, 19 June 2025
Noun
  • Late last week, some influential Democrats were saying that Lamont’s enthusiasm for his chief regulator may have cooled after PURA conceded destruction of the text messages.
    Edmund H. Mahony, Hartford Courant, 29 June 2025
  • Throughout, the cast of 17 exudes an unmistakable enthusiasm for the material, the onstage electricity radiating up the alpine slopes of the Guthrie’s expansive Wurtele Thrust.
    Rob Hubbard, Twin Cities, 28 June 2025
Noun
  • Now, as Silicon Valley investors swarm to back multi-billion dollar defense startups with increasing fervor, Somerindyke is looking to make the jump from munitions middleman to manufacturer.
    David Jeans, Forbes.com, 1 July 2025
  • In one game, contestants clutch keys suspiciously resembling crucifixes as one player leads others with fervor, for better or worse.
    Michael Ordoña, Los Angeles Times, 27 June 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Zeal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/zeal. Accessed 4 Jul. 2025.

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