1
as in secrecy
the practice or habit of keeping secrets or keeping one's affairs secret
we tried to penetrate her strange closeness about her domestic life
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in economy
the quality or practice of being overly sparing with money
rebelled against his parents' closeness with his allowance
Synonyms & Similar Words
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3
as in accuracy
the quality or state of being very accurate
the body was too decomposed to estimate the time of death with any great closeness
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4
as in intimacy
the state of being in a very personal or private relationship
the closeness of their relationship was a matter of intense speculation among their coworkers
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5
as in proximity
the state or condition of being near
we were surprised by the closeness of everything to our downtown loft
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6
as in carefulness
strict attentiveness to what one is doing
how much you get out of the sermon will depend on the closeness with which you listen to it
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of closeness
That closeness drives traction.
—
Shelli Brunswick, Forbes.com, 22 May 2026
The film centers on a pickpocket who survives by exploiting the desires of closeted men, until his detached worldview is upended when one of his marks returns seeking closeness rather than settling scores.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 17 May 2026
Outfielder Cedric Mullins, a nine-year veteran new to the Rays this season, said a big benefit of the closeness is the ability to have open and frank conversations when necessary.
—Marc Topkin, The Orlando Sentinel, 16 May 2026
That’s where Klaus Mann (August Diehl), Thomas’ homosexual Communist son, would end up taking his own life, but a furtive phone call between twin brother and sister reveals both their closeness as well as the fractures in a broken family dynamic.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 14 May 2026
And in many cases, avoidant attachment develops not from a single event, but from patterns over time that teach the brain to associate closeness with discomfort.
—Daryl Austin, USA Today, 12 May 2026
The closeness between Microsoft and OpenAI has flared up at other points.
—David Ingram, NBC news, 11 May 2026
Mother’s Day tends to be about devotion and closeness.
—Joshua Coleman, Washington Post, 9 May 2026
Having gifted us this wonderful illusion of closeness, Hit Me Hard and Soft — The Tour (Live in 3D) now offers her the grace of distance.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 7 May 2026
Shelli Brunswick, Forbes.com, 22 May 2026
The film centers on a pickpocket who survives by exploiting the desires of closeted men, until his detached worldview is upended when one of his marks returns seeking closeness rather than settling scores.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 17 May 2026
Outfielder Cedric Mullins, a nine-year veteran new to the Rays this season, said a big benefit of the closeness is the ability to have open and frank conversations when necessary.
—Marc Topkin, The Orlando Sentinel, 16 May 2026
That’s where Klaus Mann (August Diehl), Thomas’ homosexual Communist son, would end up taking his own life, but a furtive phone call between twin brother and sister reveals both their closeness as well as the fractures in a broken family dynamic.
—Ryan Lattanzio, IndieWire, 14 May 2026
And in many cases, avoidant attachment develops not from a single event, but from patterns over time that teach the brain to associate closeness with discomfort.
—Daryl Austin, USA Today, 12 May 2026
The closeness between Microsoft and OpenAI has flared up at other points.
—David Ingram, NBC news, 11 May 2026
Mother’s Day tends to be about devotion and closeness.
—Joshua Coleman, Washington Post, 9 May 2026
Having gifted us this wonderful illusion of closeness, Hit Me Hard and Soft — The Tour (Live in 3D) now offers her the grace of distance.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 7 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for closeness
Noun
-
The ballot will be separated from the return envelope to preserve the secrecy of your ballot, and it then will be tallied.—
John Woolfolk,
Mercury News,
18 May 2026
-
Quantum key cryptography allows two parties aiming to share sensitive data to establish a secure encryption key with secrecy ensured by the laws of physics, not the computational difficulty of a mathematical problem.—
Katie Hunt,
CNN Money,
17 May 2026
Noun
-
Iran's ability to impede shipping traffic through the strait, which transports roughly 20% of the world's oil, has roiled the global economy and driven up gas prices in the United States.—
Zac Anderson,
USA Today,
24 May 2026
-
Winning states’ tax policies secure larger tax bases and therefore see higher inflows of income and investment, essential for their tax competitiveness in a mobile economy.—
Nicole Huyer,
The Orlando Sentinel,
24 May 2026
Noun
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Off a hunch, Mollick ran the story through Pangram, a program that detects AI writing with 99% accuracy.—
Brittany Allen,
Literary Hub,
19 May 2026
-
Using hardware mounted to the ceilings of brick-and-mortar stores, Radar’s technology can read any radio-frequency identification, or RFID, tag with 99% accuracy, the company said.—
Gabrielle Fonrouge,
CNBC,
19 May 2026
Noun
-
Today could stir up deep thoughts around trust, intimacy, finances or emotional entanglements that have become mentally exhausting.—
Valerie Mesa,
PEOPLE,
19 May 2026
-
Alberto Iglesias’ Hitchcockian-sounding score however misses the mood this time, too big for the intimacy of this tale.—
Pete Hammond,
Deadline,
19 May 2026
Noun
-
Thomas has lived less than a mile from GKN Aerospace for about six years and had never given much thought to their proximity.—
Eric Licas,
Los Angeles Times,
23 May 2026
-
In the early stages, proximity brings clarity.—
Shelli Brunswick,
Forbes.com,
22 May 2026
Noun
-
There was no carefulness in it.—
Zack Meisel,
New York Times,
1 May 2026
-
Organizations can benefit by valuing carefulness and concentration not as an obligation, but as a fundamental pillar of success.—
Heather V. MacArthur,
Forbes.com,
22 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
McCarthy is not the first Hollywood conservative to discuss the industry’s secretiveness over Republicanism.—
Zack Sharf,
Variety,
19 Dec. 2025
Noun
-
Schanuel exited after his hit with left calf tightness.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
24 May 2026
-
The 6-foot-6 wing exited Game 2 with tightness in his left hamstring.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
22 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Closeness.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/closeness. Accessed 24 May. 2026.
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