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
Relevance
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
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 adult
Melissa Rudy, FOXNews.com, 9 Nov. 2025
An official from Thailand’s maritime enforcement command centre told Reuters the four dead included two children, age 12 and over 10, and two adults.
—Reuters, CNN Money, 9 Nov. 2025
Jenna Prestininzi, Freep.com, 21 Oct. 2025
The Melon Patch also incorporates puppets to bring in a non-adult character who relates to kids.
—Elisabeth Sherman, Parents, 23 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for adult
Noun
This was also the first time that no state had an adult obesity rate below 25%, according to the report.
—Adjective
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.
—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.—
Adjective
-
Roses should reach their mature size and flower consistently.—
-
In general, hens become mature enough to lay eggs around six months of age, though this varies slightly by breed.—
Adjective
-
Until then, the only limits on their selections were Vimeo’s standard terms of service, which prohibit content that incites violence or qualifies as pornographic.—
-
Under a new law, Florida began requiring age verification checks for visitors to pornographic websites, notes Paul Bischoff, editor of Comparitech, a site that reviews personal cybersecurity software.—
Adjective
-
Think of this as the matured version of the Kool-Aid dip-dye technique.—
Noun
-
An omnibus federal program run cooperatively with states, Medicaid in Connecticut supports medical and behavioral health services, substance abuse treatment, and nursing home and in-home elder care in Connecticut.—
-
The room erupted in laughter, capturing perfectly the resilience, joy and perspective that so many elders carry with them.—
Adjective
-
The suggestion, in other words, is that the chatbot should err on the side of permissiveness in response to user prompts for erotic material.—
-
The director was referring to the Criterion Collection’s 4K restoration of Kubrick’s erotic thriller, released last month.—
Adjective
-
There's nothing quite like ripe, juicy blueberries picked at the height of the season.—
-
Adding ripe avocado makes hummus greener, creamier, and more delicious.—
Cite this Entry
“Adult.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/adult. Accessed 13 Jan. 2026.
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share