as in grown-up
a fully grown person
at the beach, the adults sat under broad umbrellas while the children splashed in the water
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
2
as in pornographic
dealing in or with explicitly sexual material
an adult magazine
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in matured
fully grown or developed
insects that are butterflies in their adult stage
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of adult
Bestreviews, Mercury News, 27 Apr. 2026
An adult male and a juvenile female were taken to a hospital and were reported to be in stable condition.
—Judith Kohler, Denver Post, 27 Apr. 2026
Robert Ross, Robb Report, 28 Oct. 2025
Tickets are $10 for non-adult guests, free for hotel guests and non-guest children under age 12, with proceeds benefiting Give Kids the World, a nonprofit resort providing vacations to ill children and their families.
—Jenna Prestininzi, Freep.com, 21 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for adult
Noun
According to PetMD, a healthy adult cat’s diet needs roughly 25% protein, while a healthy 12-year-old-plus cat’s diet needs to be closer to 50% protein.
—Bestreviews, Mercury News, 27 Apr. 2026
An adult male and a juvenile female were taken to a hospital and were reported to be in stable condition.
—Judith Kohler, Denver Post, 27 Apr. 2026
Adjective
The junior car had gotten seriously adult.
—Robert Ross, Robb Report, 28 Oct. 2025
Tickets are $10 for non-adult guests, free for hotel guests and non-guest children under age 12, with proceeds benefiting Give Kids the World, a nonprofit resort providing vacations to ill children and their families.
—Jenna Prestininzi, Freep.com, 21 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for adult
Recent Examples of Synonyms for adult
Noun
-
Reportedly shot for less than $100,000, this tale of Pooh and Piglet all grown-up and running amok recently opened to box office success in Mexico and is currently playing on cinema screens around America.—
Clark Collis,
EW.com,
16 Feb. 2023
Adjective
-
Lactic acid and polyhydroxy acids are better choices for mature skin than stronger formulations.—
Lauren Jarvis-Gibson,
Kansas City Star,
27 Apr. 2026
-
Their relationship feels more mature, a bit deeper, and real.—
Jack Smart,
PEOPLE,
27 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Swift’s likeness has been used without permission in numerous AI fakes, including by Meta’s AI chatbots and in pornographic images that have circulated on the internet.—
Todd Spangler,
Variety,
27 Apr. 2026
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This material included thousands of pornographic deepfakes that Kamnik had generated using AI tools.—
Nate Anderson,
ArsTechnica,
9 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Think of this as the matured version of the Kool-Aid dip-dye technique.—
Kaleigh Werner,
Footwear News,
7 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
As an elder, Mellencamp often jokes about how many tours he was fired from in his salad days, usually because the headlining acts (KISS, REO Speedwagon, British hard rock act Rainbow) and their audiences didn’t take to his kiss-off attitude and misfit energy.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
29 Apr. 2026
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Warnings to ethnic minorities in the hills of northern Thailand to avoid using river water are painful for the Lahu, who are famed as fisher people, said Sela Lipo, 56, a Lahu elder.—
Anton L. Delgado,
Los Angeles Times,
29 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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The erotic implications of vampiric temptation—and of glam-rock front men who generously offer to pierce an ear under the boardwalk—remain.—
Emily Nussbaum,
New Yorker,
30 Apr. 2026
-
Mercedes Bryce Morgan, who most recently directed 2025 erotic horror Bone Lake, is helming the script adapted by Angela Gulner and Yuri Baranovsky.—
Andreas Wiseman,
Deadline,
30 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Putting in the elbow grease can be more powerful than a flashy college degree or pedigree—and the former Goldman Sachs CEO said great careers are actually ripe for the picking if professionals seize the moment and work hard.—
Emma Burleigh,
Fortune,
29 Apr. 2026
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Before then, Venus and Uranus are lighting up your local world and social life, making the first two weeks ripe for spontaneous adventure closer to home.—
Steph Koyfman,
Condé Nast Traveler,
29 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Adult.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/adult. Accessed 4 May. 2026.
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