1
as in shrill
marked by or producing a harsh combination of sounds
discordant tones coming from the poorly tuned instrument
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in noisy
making loud, confused, and usually unharmonious sounds
the discordant cries of gulls fighting over the fishing boat's castoffs
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3
as in aggressive
feeling or displaying eagerness to fight
a troubled, discordant family that would benefit from professional counseling
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4
as in conflicting
not being in agreement or harmony
his views on the proper role of diet in maintaining good health are certainly discordant with most contemporary opinions on the subject
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of discordant
But our peace – our faith and trust in ever-present God, divine Love – does affect circumstances and can heal a discordant situation.
—
Madora Kibbe, Christian Science Monitor, 19 Dec. 2025
Baumbach’s remarkably faithful take on Don DeLillo’s absurdist 1985 novel is a half-thrilling, half-discordant attempt to harmonize two distinct voices.
—Scott Tobias, Vulture, 5 Dec. 2025
The film has a way of connecting discordant wavelengths — past and future, memory and experience, reality and fiction — that's as existentially haunting as anything in recent genre history.
—Dennis Perkins, Entertainment Weekly, 31 Oct. 2025
What happened to me was a discordant event in my life.
—Brittany Spanos, Rolling Stone, 31 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for discordant
Madora Kibbe, Christian Science Monitor, 19 Dec. 2025
Baumbach’s remarkably faithful take on Don DeLillo’s absurdist 1985 novel is a half-thrilling, half-discordant attempt to harmonize two distinct voices.
—Scott Tobias, Vulture, 5 Dec. 2025
The film has a way of connecting discordant wavelengths — past and future, memory and experience, reality and fiction — that's as existentially haunting as anything in recent genre history.
—Dennis Perkins, Entertainment Weekly, 31 Oct. 2025
What happened to me was a discordant event in my life.
—Brittany Spanos, Rolling Stone, 31 Oct. 2025
See All Example Sentences for discordant
Recent Examples of Synonyms for discordant
Adjective
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On shrill winter nights, Moscow’s power is conspicuous, its Orthodox cathedrals and Stalinist high-rises illuminated, though the view falls dim in the autumn and spring, shrouded in sheets of greige.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
3 Apr. 2026
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The chaos is still an acceptable price to pay for Birney’s expertly offputting performance, a shrill mania that gets increasingly comic over time.—
Alison Herman,
Variety,
26 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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This means no two sensors are exactly alike, leading to noisy data and inconsistent results.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
29 Apr. 2026
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Lesser known but notably noisier acts were relegated to another section of the grounds, where the Diablo Stage stood, attracting non-stop aggressive movement.—
Lina Lecaro,
Rolling Stone,
27 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Gregory Bovino, the controversial head of aggressive enforcement activities in Chicago and Minneapolis, resigned from the agency.—
Rick Pearson,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Apr. 2026
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That approach, paired with more outreach to Black residents, may help increase the city’s affordable housing stock and close the gap in Black homeownership, though some city council members have urged a more aggressive push on affordable housing.—
Lily Carey,
Baltimore Sun,
27 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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While chia seeds have nutrients linked to cholesterol management, research shows conflicting evidence about their direct impact on cholesterol levels.—
Mark Gurarie,
Verywell Health,
30 Apr. 2026
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If voters approve conflicting ballot measures, the one with more yes votes would take effect.—
Queenie Wong,
Los Angeles Times,
30 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Eisenberg plays a lot of acoustic guitar, sticks mostly to normie chords, and largely avoids dissonant tangles, opting for a bright, translucent sound.—
Reed Jackson,
SPIN,
6 Apr. 2026
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The Brooklyn psych-folk artist’s 2025 debut, newly reissued by AD 93, is dissonant, ghostly, and otherworldly, summoning complex emotions with sparse tools.—
Vrinda Jagota,
Pitchfork,
19 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Israel has also enjoyed a number of military successes against Iran and its Lebanese proxy, the Hezbollah militant group.—
Julia Frankel,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Apr. 2026
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However, some members of the militant group refused to engage in the peace process from the start.—
Annabella González,
CNN Money,
26 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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After two inconsistent seasons, Johnson became a consensus first-team All-American last year, rushing for 1,537 yards and a school-record 22 touchdowns.—
Sam Warren,
New York Times,
25 Apr. 2026
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Melissa Horner’s inconsistent presence in the home seemed to upset her son’s routines.—
Harriet Ramos,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
25 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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Jesus proved over and over again the all-encompassing authority of God, which destroys all inharmonious conditions, including sin and disease.—
Thomas Mitchinson,
Christian Science Monitor,
30 Sep. 2025
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Setting Discordant Personal Goals A 2023 study published in Current Psychology finds that partners’ inharmonious goals can have detrimental effects on relationships.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes,
29 Mar. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Discordant.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/discordant. Accessed 1 May. 2026.
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