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
Jordi Lippe-McGraw, Condé Nast Traveler, 4 May 2026
After, the series stars Sadie Soverall as Percy and Matt Cornett as Sam, estranged childhood friends who reunite as adults.
—Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 4 May 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
While the kids quickly found their rhythm, we adults fell for the design.
—Jordi Lippe-McGraw, Condé Nast Traveler, 4 May 2026
After, the series stars Sadie Soverall as Percy and Matt Cornett as Sam, estranged childhood friends who reunite as adults.
—Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 4 May 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
-
Space plants according to their mature width, approximately 12-18 inches apart.—
Kim Toscano,
Southern Living,
4 May 2026
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Formulated with mature skin in mind, the primer is packed with hydrating ingredients like shea butter, vitamin E, squalane, and aloe vera.—
Isabel Garcia,
PEOPLE,
4 May 2026
Adjective
-
The illicit chatbots allegedly produced pornographic images.—
Cerys Davies,
Los Angeles Times,
28 Apr. 2026
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Pamela Martin, 44, and her boyfriend Christopher O’Kane, 41, both pleaded guilty in March to three counts of making an indecent image of a child, two counts of distributing an indecent image of a child, possession of an extreme pornographic image and publishing an obscene article.—
Christine Pelisek,
PEOPLE,
28 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
-
Marks and Nicholas were both charged with two counts of exploitation of an elder, conspiracy to commit a felony, and resisting an officer.—
Charlotte Observer,
Charlotte Observer,
6 May 2026
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Robin Granites, a senior Warlpiri elder and spokesperson for the family of the girl, urged for calm.—
Adam England,
PEOPLE,
1 May 2026
Adjective
-
But the specific French dispensation—the idea that a man’s erotic life exists outside the moral world of his other obligations, that the wife and the mistress are a civilized arrangement, that desire is sovereign—this mythology did not make the crossing with me, or did not survive it intact.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
6 May 2026
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The Florida native, who studied sculpture in college and has an academic interest in erotic art and kitsch, spent 15 years with Playboy (partly as a Cyber Girl, the virtual equivalent of the in-print Playmate), and joined OnlyFans in 2020 before purchasing the home she’s dubbed Ho Château.—
Zoey Goto,
Architectural Digest,
6 May 2026
Adjective
-
Here, ripe slices are layered over a buttery, flaky crust with garlic, grated cheese, lemon zest, and fresh herbs, then baked until the edges are deeply golden and the tomatoes are soft and caramelized.—
Andy Baraghani,
Bon Appetit Magazine,
6 May 2026
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The use of biometrics has been controversial, and privacy advocates have warned the practice could be ripe for identity theft and that customers’ biometric data could be shared with law enforcement.—
Evan Simko-Bednarski,
New York Daily News,
6 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Adult.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/adult. Accessed 8 May. 2026.
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