1
as in pornographic
dealing in or with explicitly sexual material
for his comedy-club performances the stand-up comic's routines are definitely X-rated
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in obscene
depicting or referring to sexual matters in a way that is unacceptable in polite society
the jerk should have known better than to tell an X-rated joke at a company function
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 X-rated
For the first seven years of the rating system (1969-1975), nearly half of the top films (33 of 70) were R- or X-rated.
—
Tom Brueggemann, IndieWire, 26 July 2024
What audiences see are silhouettes engaged in a shadow play of entwined hands and arched backs, sensual but not X-rated.
—Rebecca Ritzel, Washington Post, 13 Feb. 2024
Granted, none of these are X-rated, but one of my concerns is that the intensity of this online relationship has grown quite exponentially in a very short time and could very well lead to actual X-rated.
—Amy Dickinson, The Mercury News, 31 Jan. 2024
Keep the red boost light on with your right foot and the Riviera will eventually peak out at 105 mph, although the speedometer is X-rated above 85.
—Don Sherman, Car and Driver, 8 Mar. 2023
Tom Brueggemann, IndieWire, 26 July 2024
What audiences see are silhouettes engaged in a shadow play of entwined hands and arched backs, sensual but not X-rated.
—Rebecca Ritzel, Washington Post, 13 Feb. 2024
Granted, none of these are X-rated, but one of my concerns is that the intensity of this online relationship has grown quite exponentially in a very short time and could very well lead to actual X-rated.
—Amy Dickinson, The Mercury News, 31 Jan. 2024
Keep the red boost light on with your right foot and the Riviera will eventually peak out at 105 mph, although the speedometer is X-rated above 85.
—Don Sherman, Car and Driver, 8 Mar. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for X-rated
Adjective
-
Why 'Shrinking' Is a Parents-Only Watch The themes, relationships, and conversations in this show are primarily adult in nature.—
Elisabeth Sherman,
Parents,
27 Feb. 2025
-
The next decades will witness, for the first time, the full impact of one-child families on adult Chinese society.—
Henry A. Kissinger,
Foreign Affairs,
1 Mar. 2012
Adjective
-
The law requires pornographic websites to verify users’ ages – for example by making users scan and upload their driver’s license – before granting access to content that is deemed obscene for minors but not adults.—
Meg Leta Jones,
The Conversation,
27 June 2025
-
Lawsuit alleges 'obscene' government overreach Longo's lawsuit, filed in Chemung County, New York, names the county, the city of Elmira and several DEC officers as defendants.—
Jeanine Santucci,
USA Today,
12 July 2025
Adjective
-
Spartacus: House of Ashur is a thrilling, erotic, history-bending, roller-coaster experience that builds on everything that made the original series a colossal hit.—
Rosy Cordero,
Deadline,
26 July 2025
-
But this experience need not be limited to Catholicism’s terms of repentance, for the church offers only one kind of erotic container.—
Terry Nguyen
July 23,
Literary Hub,
23 July 2025
Adjective
-
By The Athletic’s count, over nine innings during the Yankees’ 6-2 win over the Mets, those fans aimed the same vulgar chant at Soto a whopping 38 times.—
Will Sammon,
New York Times,
17 May 2025
-
Because at the time, Madonna was seen as this controversial and sort of vulgar character.—
Terry Gross,
NPR,
17 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“X-rated.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/X-rated. Accessed 7 Aug. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share