1
as in stacks
a quantity of things thrown or stacked on one another
a large pile of newspapers that needed to be disposed of
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in loads
a considerable amount
a job that paid piles of money
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in heaps
to lay or throw on top of one another
piled all the clothes on the chair before putting them away
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in huddles
to gather into a closely packed group
the kids piled into the car
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of piles
Tom MacCubbin, The Orlando Sentinel, 25 Apr. 2026
Windscale’s two piles had been hastily built during the British atomic bomb project.
—Kurt Snibbe, Oc Register, 25 Apr. 2026
The island is enough, with its vegetable patches and firepit sheltered by dry walls at the island’s highest point; its rocky corners suitable for leaps into the sea that Antje has marked with little piles of stones.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Apr. 2026
Historically, farmers harvested potatoes and then stored them in huge piles at around 50 degrees Fahrenheit (10 degrees Celsius).
—CBS News, 22 Apr. 2026
The best laundry hampers are essentials that ensure your space isn’t swallowed up by piles of dirty clothes.
—Julia Harrison, Architectural Digest, 20 Apr. 2026
Black smoke billowed into the night sky of the Ukrainian capital, the morning revealing charred cars and piles of debris scattered next to damaged buildings.
—Yuliya Talmazan, NBC news, 16 Apr. 2026
Gray foxes may use wood piles, hollow trees, or brush piles as dens, says Pierce.
—Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 16 Apr. 2026
Lacking vegetation, reservoir crappies set up to spawn around cypress trees, stumps, brush piles, or a nice quiet boat dock.
—Cory Schmidt, Outdoor Life, 15 Apr. 2026
Matt Cabral, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Apr. 2026
The result piles more pressure on Starmer, the least popular prime minister since records began, according to some polls.
—Alexander Smith, NBC news, 27 Feb. 2026
But when snow piles up in powdery white masses, Arizonans can't resist the opportunity to play in it.
—Michael Salerno, AZCentral.com, 19 Feb. 2026
His intervention piles fresh pressure on the prime minister.
—Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 9 Feb. 2026
But the cleanups did remove the garbage that piles up along the San Juan, robbing the gillagers of a reliable source of income.
—Sean Williams, Harpers Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026
These outdoor hangout spots don't get much use during the winter, but snow still piles up on decks during winter storms.
—Lee Wallender, The Spruce, 8 Jan. 2026
Blackwood’s absence piles it on with several layers of awful.
—Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 4 Jan. 2026
Then Carol piles everything on her plate into a rough slice of avocado toast, mashing them together in an improvised layer.
—Scott Tobias, Vulture, 5 Dec. 2025
Noun
Turn compost piles every two weeks.
—Tom MacCubbin, The Orlando Sentinel, 25 Apr. 2026
Windscale’s two piles had been hastily built during the British atomic bomb project.
—Kurt Snibbe, Oc Register, 25 Apr. 2026
The island is enough, with its vegetable patches and firepit sheltered by dry walls at the island’s highest point; its rocky corners suitable for leaps into the sea that Antje has marked with little piles of stones.
—Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Apr. 2026
Historically, farmers harvested potatoes and then stored them in huge piles at around 50 degrees Fahrenheit (10 degrees Celsius).
—CBS News, 22 Apr. 2026
The best laundry hampers are essentials that ensure your space isn’t swallowed up by piles of dirty clothes.
—Julia Harrison, Architectural Digest, 20 Apr. 2026
Black smoke billowed into the night sky of the Ukrainian capital, the morning revealing charred cars and piles of debris scattered next to damaged buildings.
—Yuliya Talmazan, NBC news, 16 Apr. 2026
Gray foxes may use wood piles, hollow trees, or brush piles as dens, says Pierce.
—Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 16 Apr. 2026
Lacking vegetation, reservoir crappies set up to spawn around cypress trees, stumps, brush piles, or a nice quiet boat dock.
—Cory Schmidt, Outdoor Life, 15 Apr. 2026
Verb
More specifically — and without spoiling a story that piles the twists as high as the corpses — Pine's an ex-British soldier pulled from his porter duties and recruited to surveil a ruthless arms dealer, Richard Roper (Hugh Laurie) staying at the hotel.
—Matt Cabral, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Apr. 2026
The result piles more pressure on Starmer, the least popular prime minister since records began, according to some polls.
—Alexander Smith, NBC news, 27 Feb. 2026
But when snow piles up in powdery white masses, Arizonans can't resist the opportunity to play in it.
—Michael Salerno, AZCentral.com, 19 Feb. 2026
His intervention piles fresh pressure on the prime minister.
—Efrat Lachter, FOXNews.com, 9 Feb. 2026
But the cleanups did remove the garbage that piles up along the San Juan, robbing the gillagers of a reliable source of income.
—Sean Williams, Harpers Magazine, 27 Jan. 2026
These outdoor hangout spots don't get much use during the winter, but snow still piles up on decks during winter storms.
—Lee Wallender, The Spruce, 8 Jan. 2026
Blackwood’s absence piles it on with several layers of awful.
—Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 4 Jan. 2026
Then Carol piles everything on her plate into a rough slice of avocado toast, mashing them together in an improvised layer.
—Scott Tobias, Vulture, 5 Dec. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for piles
Verb
-
The side table unfolds into six stools for gatherings, then neatly stacks back together into a stylish end piece.—
Mariana Best,
Better Homes & Gardens,
26 Apr. 2026
-
At home, Jonathan Wright, director of the Indianapolis art museum's park and gardens, stuffs in the plants, stacks the pots, and lets everything grow.—
Teresa Woodard,
Midwest Living,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The boiler is broken, so Kuhner huddles by a small space heater in his office in the winter.—
Emma Green,
New Yorker,
17 Apr. 2026
-
Tinos huddles close to its much more popular cousin, Mykonos, just a 20-minute ferry ride away.—
Stacey Leasca,
Travel + Leisure,
12 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The presentation is muddied a bit by the strong bass and lack of stereo separation, which crowds the lower registers (something that’s not helped by the recording's acoustics).—
Mark Knapp,
PC Magazine,
1 Apr. 2026
-
Filming in front of real audiences, alongside real racers and real pit crews, the director crowds the screen with people.—
Savannah Salazar,
Vulture,
13 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
Fatemian simply bunches each slice slightly, creating a ruffled, flower-like radish slice that is then inserted between the rest of the vegetables.—
Sophia Beams,
Better Homes & Gardens,
6 Sep. 2025
-
The radiation bunches up the electrons, leading to their amplifying only a specific wavelength, creating a laser beam.—
IEEE Spectrum,
IEEE Spectrum,
10 June 2024
Cite this Entry
“Piles.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/piles. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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