1
as in to radiate
to throw or give off
spermaceti candles, made from whale oil, are known to cast an exceptionally bright light
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Relevance
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2
as in to aim
to point or turn (something) toward a target or goal
cast her eyes skyward for signs of the rescue plane
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3
as in to prepare
to put (something) into proper and usually carefully worked out written form
carefully cast the letter of complaint as politely as possible
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4
as in to throw
to send through the air especially with a quick forward motion of the arm
cast a rock into the stream
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1
as in prediction
a declaration that something will happen in the future
stock market analysts offered an optimistic cast for the coming year
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2
as in shade
a property that becomes apparent when light falls on an object and by which things that are identical in form can be distinguished
the walls had a slight yellowish cast
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3
4
as in look
facial appearance regarded as an indication of mood or feeling
his face took on a somewhat sad cast when we asked how his ill wife was faring
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5
as in shape
the outward appearance of something as distinguished from its substance
the lovely cast of the baby's features
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as in to dump
to get rid of as useless or unwanted
once she became rich and didn't need them anymore, she cast off all her old friends like so much junk
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as in to add
to combine (numbers) into a single sum
had worked as a clerk in a countinghouse, mainly casting up long columns of figures every day
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as in discarded
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of cast
Doug Bock Clark, ProPublica, 10 Apr. 2025
Piper was also cast as Skye on the show Mani at age 10 but left after Tiffany allegedly grew frustrated that another actress received more lines than her daughter, according to the docuseries.
—Emily Krauser, People.com, 10 Apr. 2025
Nick Caruso, TVLine, 10 Apr. 2025
The original cast recording of Hamilton, the score of the videogame Minecraft and a milestone 1970 album by Miles Davis are among the 25 latest additions to the National Recording Registry.
—Neda Ulaby, NPR, 9 Apr. 2025
Lizz Schumer, People.com, 29 Sep. 2024
And indeed, sometimes this is the case: one candidate discovered four years ago, 2020 SO, was eventually removed from the mini-moon list after it was shown to be the cast-off upper stage of a rocket that launched NASA’s interplanetary Surveyor 2 mission in 1966.
—Lee Billings, Scientific American, 25 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for cast
Verb
Spurred by ProPublica’s reporting, Democrats have introduced a measure designed to block a right-wing strategy to disallow ballots after they were cast.
—Doug Bock Clark, ProPublica, 10 Apr. 2025
Piper was also cast as Skye on the show Mani at age 10 but left after Tiffany allegedly grew frustrated that another actress received more lines than her daughter, according to the docuseries.
—Emily Krauser, People.com, 10 Apr. 2025
Noun
What’s your reaction to your fellow cast members’ words?
—Nick Caruso, TVLine, 10 Apr. 2025
The original cast recording of Hamilton, the score of the videogame Minecraft and a milestone 1970 album by Miles Davis are among the 25 latest additions to the National Recording Registry.
—Neda Ulaby, NPR, 9 Apr. 2025
Adjective
Weisman had landed on the floor and was flat on his back amid an upturned ashtray, a cast-off tablecloth and a clutter of broken crystal.
—Lizz Schumer, People.com, 29 Sep. 2024
And indeed, sometimes this is the case: one candidate discovered four years ago, 2020 SO, was eventually removed from the mini-moon list after it was shown to be the cast-off upper stage of a rocket that launched NASA’s interplanetary Surveyor 2 mission in 1966.
—Lee Billings, Scientific American, 25 Sep. 2024
See All Example Sentences for cast
Cite this Entry
“Cast.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cast. Accessed 25 Apr. 2025.
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