passion

1
2
as in crush
a strong but often short-lived liking for another person her passion passed when she got to know him

Synonyms & Similar Words

3
4
5
6
as in feeling
passions plural general emotional condition people who are swayed by their passions and not by reason

Synonyms & Similar Words

7
8

Synonym Chooser

How is the word passion distinct from other similar nouns?

Some common synonyms of passion are affection, emotion, feeling, and sentiment. While all these words mean "a subjective response to a person, thing, or situation," passion suggests a very powerful or controlling emotion.

revenge became his ruling passion

When is it sensible to use affection instead of passion?

The synonyms affection and passion are sometimes interchangeable, but affection applies to feelings that are also inclinations or likings.

a memoir of childhood filled with affection for her family

How are the words emotion and feeling related as synonyms of passion?

Emotion carries a strong implication of excitement or agitation but, like feeling, encompasses both positive and negative responses.

the drama portrays the emotions of adolescence

When would feeling be a good substitute for passion?

The meanings of feeling and passion largely overlap; however, feeling denotes any partly mental, partly physical response marked by pleasure, pain, attraction, or repulsion; it may suggest the mere existence of a response but imply nothing about the nature or intensity of it.

the feelings that once moved me are gone

When can sentiment be used instead of passion?

The words sentiment and passion are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, sentiment often implies an emotion inspired by an idea.

her feminist sentiments are well known

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 passion The heir to the throne has made mental health a focus of his royal work and puts his passion into action through programming to help support the mental health of the Duchy of Cornwall's farming tenants. Janine Henni, People.com, 6 June 2025 Today's listen Seth MacFarlane, best known for creating American Dad! and Family Guy, has another passion: singing. Brittney Melton, NPR, 6 June 2025 The anger melted away, eventually giving way to a dogged passion for getting the music in front of more listeners. Tyler Hicks, Rolling Stone, 5 June 2025 The position requires mechanical skills and a passion for sharing automotive history with the public. Jamie L. Lareau, USA Today, 5 June 2025 See All Example Sentences for passion
Recent Examples of Synonyms for passion
Noun
  • Patrick and Brittany Mahomes talked about their love of softball and women’s sports during an in-game interview.
    Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 6 June 2025
  • This kind of love showed me there’s still hope and joy worth standing up for, calling out for, loudly, even, worth creating for.
    Jonathan Bernstein, Rolling Stone, 6 June 2025
Noun
  • Yet, despite it all, Benét says his parents remained loving and nurturing, even to the point that when Benét had a crush on a white girl in high school, bringing her home for dinner, his parents were warm and accepting.
    Meagan Jordan, Rolling Stone, 13 June 2025
  • With human actors, there's more of a high-school movie vibe as Hiccup becomes more accepted among the young Vikings, and the relationship between Thames’ Hiccup and his frenemy/crush Astrid (Nico Parker) is built out a little more here.
    Brian Truitt, USA Today, 10 June 2025
Noun
  • This decision reflects a broader skepticism toward centralized identity infrastructure and a desire to limit the federal government’s role in managing citizen-level credentials.
    Emil Sayegh, Forbes.com, 7 June 2025
  • Trump is 78 years old and expresses a desire to bring America back to a golden age of manufacturing before globalism outsourced American jobs and created a reliance on foreign trade.
    Charles Singh, USA Today, 7 June 2025
Noun
  • The emerging British singer brought a lot of heart and emotion to the performance.
    Rosa Escandon, Forbes.com, 10 June 2025
  • In a battle defined by grit and high emotions, the Miami Hurricanes fell to the Louisville Cardinals, 3-2, in Game 3 of the NCAA Louisville Super Regional.
    Miami Herald, Miami Herald, 8 June 2025
Noun
  • The club is led by driver and CEO Tom Slingsby, the Australian 2012 Olympic gold medalist, who shared his enthusiasm for adding Jackman and Reynolds to the crew.
    Anna Lazarus Caplan, People.com, 5 June 2025
  • This contrasts with an apparent upcoming boom in Europe, although this is based on government coercion rather than enthusiasm for EVs.
    Neil Winton, Forbes.com, 5 June 2025
Noun
  • JoJo Siwa definitely has some complicated feelings about Miley Cyrus joking about her sexuality.
    Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 12 June 2025
  • Full transparency that a bot isn’t a human and doesn’t have human feelings is also essential.
    Andrew R. Chow, Time, 12 June 2025
Noun
  • But anyone who's ever lived in Manhattan has gone through this luxury lust.
    Tom Gliatto, People.com, 12 June 2025
  • Where does the boundary between lust, obsession, fandom, and devotion lie?
    Samantha Bergeson, IndieWire, 5 June 2025
Noun
  • The group were filmed licking and sniffing the younger kitten in a clear show of affection, in the post to TikTok from April 25.
    Melissa Fleur Afshar, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 June 2025
  • Upon his release, Nick learns that the target of his affections has another admirer, Chester (Shawn Ashmore), his no-nonsense parole officer.
    Matt Grobar, Deadline, 4 June 2025

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Passion.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/passion. Accessed 19 Jun. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on passion

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!