1
as in pacifists
a person who opposes war or warlike policies
the doves were in favor of using the surplus to improve the nation's schools and not its weapons systems
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in angels
an innocent or gentle person
he's a dove who wouldn't hurt a fly
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 doves
First, many Iran doves seriously underestimated the risks and costs of attempting to coexist with the regime.
—
Jamie McIntyre, The Washington Examiner, 26 Mar. 2026
Hunters and outfitters who only hunt doves in the South Zone, though, likely see the earlier opportunity as a victory.
—Matt Wyatt, Houston Chronicle, 23 Mar. 2026
Stamp the snow down under the feeder to accommodate ground-feeding birds such as doves and dark-eyed juncos.
—Tim Johnson, Chicago Tribune, 14 Mar. 2026
Hawks and doves will continue to compete for influence in both capitals.
—Mehrzad Boroujerdi, The Conversation, 10 Mar. 2026
Mourning doves, chickadees, finches, and sparrows love their nutritious seeds.
—Anne Readel, Better Homes & Gardens, 20 Feb. 2026
There, birds sang, mostly sparrows and doves, diving in and out of the hedge.
—Literary Hub, 19 Feb. 2026
Those doves were not decoration.
—Sudhir Gupta, Rolling Stone, 4 Feb. 2026
The stunning display drew gasps from the audience, as the performers moved from creating two doves to joinging together to create one bird around the performers.
—Lydia Price, PEOPLE, 3 Feb. 2026
Jamie McIntyre, The Washington Examiner, 26 Mar. 2026
Hunters and outfitters who only hunt doves in the South Zone, though, likely see the earlier opportunity as a victory.
—Matt Wyatt, Houston Chronicle, 23 Mar. 2026
Stamp the snow down under the feeder to accommodate ground-feeding birds such as doves and dark-eyed juncos.
—Tim Johnson, Chicago Tribune, 14 Mar. 2026
Hawks and doves will continue to compete for influence in both capitals.
—Mehrzad Boroujerdi, The Conversation, 10 Mar. 2026
Mourning doves, chickadees, finches, and sparrows love their nutritious seeds.
—Anne Readel, Better Homes & Gardens, 20 Feb. 2026
There, birds sang, mostly sparrows and doves, diving in and out of the hedge.
—Literary Hub, 19 Feb. 2026
Those doves were not decoration.
—Sudhir Gupta, Rolling Stone, 4 Feb. 2026
The stunning display drew gasps from the audience, as the performers moved from creating two doves to joinging together to create one bird around the performers.
—Lydia Price, PEOPLE, 3 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for doves
Noun
-
All voiceover in the film is detached from the images, from a mixture of unidentified community folk who are content to speak anonymously, and neighboring outsiders perplexed by these out-of-time pacifists.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
21 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Photos of him in frames with hearts and angels wings dotted the shelves.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
26 Mar. 2026
-
The lyrics of their earlier tracks are dotted with images of angels and other elements of the divine.—
Colin Joyce,
Pitchfork,
18 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, and much of the Iranian security hierarchy, would not survive the first day of bombing; neither would about a hundred and seventy-five innocents in the southern city of Minab, most of them children.—
David Remnick,
New Yorker,
21 Mar. 2026
-
In a key scene, the innocents jump back and forth between dinner parties playing out at the same time despite taking place on successive nights.—
Manuel Mendoza,
Dallas Morning News,
8 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Further, forcing suburban commuter cities to sit at the table with the city of San Diego controlling 42 of 100 votes on the SANDAG board is like two wolves and a sheep voting on what to have for dinner.—
John Franklin,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
27 Mar. 2026
-
Your littlest charges will marvel at the size of the camels, tortoises and giraffes lumbering about the zoo’s meandering paths, and then eagerly pet goats and sheep in the farmyard.—
Susan McDonald,
The Providence Journal,
26 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
In preterm lambs, survival time increased from ~18 hours to ~60 hours.—
Srishti Gupta,
Interesting Engineering,
28 Mar. 2026
-
Common types are crabgrass, goosegrass, giant foxtail, smooth pigweed, common lambs quarters, purslane, galinsoga, common ragweed, and tall morning glory.—
Mary Marlowe Leverette,
Southern Living,
14 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Doves.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/doves. Accessed 4 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
