Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective defunct contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of defunct are dead, deceased, departed, and late. While all these words mean "devoid of life," defunct stresses cessation of active existence or operation.

a defunct television series

When is dead a more appropriate choice than defunct?

The meanings of dead and defunct largely overlap; however, dead applies literally to what is deprived of vital force but is used figuratively of anything that has lost any attribute (such as energy, activity, radiance) suggesting life.

a dead, listless performance

How does the word deceased relate to other synonyms for defunct?

Deceased, departed, and late apply to persons who have died recently. Deceased is the preferred term in legal use.

the estate of the deceased

When might departed be a better fit than defunct?

The words departed and defunct are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, departed is used usually as a euphemism.

our departed sister

When would late be a good substitute for defunct?

While in some cases nearly identical to defunct, late is used especially with reference to a person in a specific relation or status.

the company's late president

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 defunct The project, a dream pairing of two in-demand actors in The Perfect Couple and Bad Sisters’ Hewson and The White Lotus and The Last Of Us‘ Bartlett to series, originated at the now defunct ABC Signature where Berg and Countee had been under overall deals. Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 3 Feb. 2025 The ships, built 30 years ago to sail the St. Lawrence Seaway, were first overhauled in 2019 under the Victory name by the now defunct American Queen Voyages. Jeri Clausing, AFAR Media, 23 Jan. 2025 Bush chose Moody a year later to serve on the Board of Regents, the defunct governing body for the state’s university system. Dan Sullivan, Miami Herald, 17 Jan. 2025 Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images Digital Currency Group, the crypto firm founded by Barry Silbert, and the former executive of a defunct unit are paying the SEC $38.5 million for misleading investors. Mackenzie Sigalos, CNBC, 17 Jan. 2025 See All Example Sentences for defunct
Recent Examples of Synonyms for defunct
Adjective
  • There, those who live along the border, which is reinforced by not one but three walls, are pushed, after a food crisis, to reanimate and eat extinct species—a process later appropriated by the superrich, for more voyeuristic amusements.
    David L. Ulin, The Atlantic, 21 Feb. 2025
  • This lineage once ruled the food chain in the time after dinosaurs went extinct, preying on primates, early hippos, early elephants and hyraxes, but were later wiped out themselves.
    Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA TODAY, 19 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • Read, 44, is accused of hitting her boyfriend John O’Keefe with her SUV and leaving him for dead in a snowstorm in 2022.
    David Matthews, New York Daily News, 19 Feb. 2025
  • The future of the ceasefire remains unclear When the first phase of the ceasefire ends on March 2, there will still be 59 hostages remaining in Gaza, nearly half of them confirmed dead.
    Daniel Estrin, NPR, 18 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • Unlawful display of registration tab: At 5 p.m., deputies stopped a motorist at Lawrence Expressway and Prospect Road for expired registration.
    Anne Gelhaus, The Mercury News, 7 Feb. 2025
  • But while your face gets the royal treatment, does the rest of your skin survive on occasional slaps of expired lotion?
    Erin Bunch, SELF, 5 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • Following Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's security consultation, a decision will be made on the continuation of the process, including the return of deceased hostages in this stage of the exchange, an Israeli political source said.
    Jon Haworth, ABC News, 22 Feb. 2025
  • Luigi Mangione's Extended Family and Relatives Luigi Mangione's grandparents are deceased.
    Tom Rogers, Newsweek, 21 Feb. 2025
Adjective
  • So many firsts, gone, charred to ash, just remnants of an area that once represented Black prosperity and joy.
    Maya Richard-Craven, Forbes, 13 Jan. 2025
  • The original pioneers were mostly busy making non-hyperpop or gone: SOPHIE tragically died in 2021; 100 gecs spent years toiling to make their zany stadium-rock second album.
    Kieran Press-Reynolds, Pitchfork, 3 Oct. 2024

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Cite this Entry

“Defunct.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/defunct. Accessed 1 Mar. 2025.

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