1
as in romance
also affaire
a brief romantic relationship
an affair between two singles spending the summer at the same beach resort
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2
as in event
a social gathering
the annual country club dance is a really fancy affair
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3
as in production
something produced by physical or intellectual effort
the lead float in the parade was a pretty impressive affair, a giant eagle's head with equally huge wings
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4
as in incident
something that happens
the whole affair from start to finish took a total of 15 minutes
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5
as in matter
something to be dealt with
it's none of your affair whom I'm going out with tonight
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of affair
But when reports appear in the paper implicating Lizzy in an affair, Nan is distraught and recruits her mom, Patricia St. George (Christina Hendricks) for help.
—
Maureen Lee Lenker Published, EW.com, 6 Aug. 2025
Even the final round of this year's women's chess world cup was an all-Indian affair.
—Omkar Khandekar, NPR, 5 Aug. 2025
The signing ceremonies at the Sun studio six days later were an intimate affair, including Elvis and his parents, Sam Phillips, Bob Neal, the Colonel and Tom Diskin, a couple of regional RCA representatives, and Coleman Tily.
—Jem Aswad, Variety, 5 Aug. 2025
Dear Eric: My husband has been having an affair with a neighbor two doors down.
—R. Eric Thomas, Chicago Tribune, 3 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for affair
Maureen Lee Lenker Published, EW.com, 6 Aug. 2025
Even the final round of this year's women's chess world cup was an all-Indian affair.
—Omkar Khandekar, NPR, 5 Aug. 2025
The signing ceremonies at the Sun studio six days later were an intimate affair, including Elvis and his parents, Sam Phillips, Bob Neal, the Colonel and Tom Diskin, a couple of regional RCA representatives, and Coleman Tily.
—Jem Aswad, Variety, 5 Aug. 2025
Dear Eric: My husband has been having an affair with a neighbor two doors down.
—R. Eric Thomas, Chicago Tribune, 3 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for affair
Recent Examples of Synonyms for affair
Noun
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There are different levels to the show: a romance level, the thriller aspect and then that familial layer.—
Angelique Jackson,
Variety,
19 Aug. 2025
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His portfolio also boasts a writing stint on Russell T. Davies’ Doctor Who, as well as Dracula, Inside Man and HBO’s sci-fi romance miniseries The Time Traveler’s Wife, among others.—
Lily Ford,
HollywoodReporter,
19 Aug. 2025
Noun
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The event will include a fireside chat moderated by WLWT anchor Courtis Fuller and a question and answer portion.—
Grace Tucker,
The Enquirer,
13 Aug. 2025
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Seize the moment: In the world of live sports, timely posting has a direct impact on performance, especially during live events.—
Forbes.com,
Forbes.com,
13 Aug. 2025
Noun
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The theory is that each of these tax rates distinctly discourages the production and the seizing of initiative in the economy; therefore, cutting them enhances economic activity to an uncommon degree.—
Brian Domitrovic,
Forbes.com,
9 Aug. 2025
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Advanta’s production quadrupled when implementing the robots.—
Stuart Dyos,
The Tennessean,
7 Aug. 2025
Noun
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According to the 2025 Breach Barometer, healthcare data breaches broke records in 2024 with 1,160 incidents affecting patient and healthcare organization data alike.—
Arun Shrestha,
Forbes.com,
7 Aug. 2025
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Kolby was critically injured in the incident and taken to UCI Medical Center.—
Skyler Caruso,
People.com,
7 Aug. 2025
Noun
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De Haan listed a few that could impact oil prices: Could a breakthrough in U.S.-Russia talks this week matter to prices?—
David Lightman,
Sacbee.com,
12 Aug. 2025
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And that is why global health matters, and that is why institutions like the Fogarty International Center matter.—
Madhukar Pai,
Forbes.com,
12 Aug. 2025
Noun
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The décor has also been the subject of some intrigue.—
Adriane Quinlan,
Curbed,
5 Aug. 2025
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And that doesn’t even get into the Succession-esque family intrigue of Skydance’s David Ellison teaming up with his father Larry Ellison, the world’s second richest person and founder of software giant Oracle.—
Sarah Whitmire,
Forbes.com,
5 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Texas Democrats return home Democrats in the Texas House of Representatives returned to Austin on Monday after leaving the state two weeks ago in protest of a Republican plan to redraw congressional maps to help the party gain seats in 2026.—
Nicole Fallert,
USA Today,
20 Aug. 2025
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During the negotiation of the 1975 Helsinki Final Act, a landmark diplomatic agreement designed to improve relations between East and West, Brzezinski acted as an informal adviser to Western European parties to the talks.—
Niall Ferguson,
Foreign Affairs,
19 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Consider Priya, a high-performing marketing lead who transitioned into product strategy.—
Vibhas Ratanjee,
Forbes.com,
8 Aug. 2025
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The stevia and monk fruit products were mislabeled.—
Amber Brenza,
Health,
8 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Affair.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/affair. Accessed 22 Aug. 2025.
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