SPELLS Synonyms: 149 Similar and Opposite Words

spells 1 of 2

noun

plural of spell

as in incantations

a spoken word or set of words believed to have magic power the witch cast a spell that turned the prince into a toad

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Relevance

as in bouts

a sudden experiencing of a physical or mental disorder a dizzy spell that caused me to fall

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in whiles

an indefinite but usually short period of time come rest a spell

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spells

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of spell

as in possesses

to cast a spell on it was as if he had spelled the public into believing his ridiculous claims

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

blesses

as in means

to communicate or convey (as an idea) to the mind that summertime combination of hot temperatures and equally hot tempers can spell trouble

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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 spells

Noun

Not only are sick-leave rates shown to spike during intense hot spells, but health and safety laws in countries such as Italy and Greece oblige workers to actively stop working during peak midday heat. — Oliver Balch, Fortune, 27 July 2026 Months of dry weather, a record lack of snow in some areas, hot spells and erratic winds have contributed. — Los Angeles Times, 25 July 2026 One way midfielder Zorhan Bassong thinks Sporting can avoid those long spells of getting lost in the game is through repetition of situations during training — almost for the sake of repetition. — Daniel Sperry, Kansas City Star, 23 July 2026 After spells at Le Havre, ASPTT Marseille and Nationals of Cavigal, RB Leipzig pounced last summer to sign him from the amateur ranks of French football. — Jordan Campbell, New York Times, 22 July 2026 In fact, his only spells in charge of lower league clubs in Spain had been mostly underwhelming. — Chris Evans, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026 Deep watering is crucial to keeping plants healthy during hot spells. — Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 19 July 2026 The 2018 World Cup winner has nearly 300 career goals across spells at Real Sociedad, FC Barcelona and Atlético Madrid, leaving the latter as the club’s all-time leading scorer with 211. — Scott Turick, The Orlando Sentinel, 18 July 2026 There are no Zeus or Poseidon or Ino or Heracles sightings, and the herald Hermes, who has a pretty big role in Homer’s tale — freeing Odysseus from Calypso and giving him a magical herb to shield him from Circe’s spells — is nowhere to be found. — Marlow Stern, Variety, 17 July 2026

Verb

And a few thousands of a second often spells the difference between profits and losses. — Bernard Condon, Fortune, 18 July 2026 The resumption of the season also spells the beginning of the end for three of the worst umpires in the league. — Zach Dean Outkick, FOXNews.com, 17 July 2026 All of this spells the need for clear rules and for lawmakers and law enforcement to catch up with this rapidly changing transportation. — Doug Turnbull, AJC.com, 5 July 2026 The table below spells them out in grams (g), milligrams (mg), micrograms (mcg), and international units (IU). — Lana Barhum, Verywell Health, 1 July 2026 But were those two spells the best representation of Marsch soccer? — Joshua Kloke, New York Times, 25 June 2026 If Ohio is suddenly in play, that spells big problems for a GOP majority. — Philip Elliott, Time, 23 June 2026 The document spells this out in the standard ETF risk language every such fund must carry. — Dara-Abasi Ita, Forbes.com, 21 June 2026 The L'Oca d'Oro website spells that out, too. — Bailey Richards, PEOPLE, 27 May 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for spells

Noun

Halloween Horror Nights fans will encounter demonic forces when Book of the Dead incantations are read aloud inside the newest Evil Dead haunted house coming to Universal Studios Hollywood.

— Brady MacDonald, Oc Register, 21 July 2026
Circe is able, by means of drugs and incantations, to change humans into wolves, lions, and other animals.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 1 July 2026

Definition of incantations

Noun

The creator of vivid, indelible fantasies for women to try on and to embody was also a fragile and anguished man, troubled throughout his life by alcohol, drug dependency, and bouts of debilitating depression.

— Naomi Fry, New Yorker, 1 Aug. 2026
The event, featuring 14 bouts, kicks off with an early start, streaming exclusively on Paramount+.

— Trent Reinsmith, Forbes.com, 1 Aug. 2026

Definition of bouts

Verb

In that future, teams may still resemble those of today, only each possesses an AI teammate.

— Michael Ashley, Forbes.com, 29 July 2026
Bringing together buyers, investors, and creators from around the world on one platform in Thailand – and seeing real business agreements emerge — proves that Thai content possesses genuine commercial potential.

— Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 28 July 2026

Definition of possesses

Noun

Directed by Sébastien Vanicek (2023’s Infested), the follow-up to 2023 reboot Evil Dead Rise stars Wednesday‘s Hunter Doohan in a story about curses lingering too long in a family and the undead that haunts them.

— Anthony D'Alessandro, Deadline, 7 July 2026
Morgan and her Judgment Day cronies tried to bribe Danhausen to put curses on their opponents.

— Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 28 June 2026

Definition of curses

Noun

Harbaugh had tense standoffs with legacy defenders Ed Reed, Ray Lewis and Terrell Suggs and, during the 2012 season, held a sitdown with his players to address their vicious and personal attacks on his approach.

— Ian O'Connor, New York Times, 22 July 2026
Israeli intelligence believes Iran moved part of its enriched uranium stockpile to Pickaxe Mountain after last June’s attacks, an Israeli source familiar with the matter told CNN.

— Arpita Dasika, CNN Money, 22 July 2026

Definition of attacks

Noun

Sea bass crudo is a refreshing start, the succulent slices of fish interspersed with fresh mango and bits of teardrop pepper.

— Connie Ogle July 31, Miami Herald, 31 July 2026
This naturally generated probabilistic bits, or p-bits which aren’t fixed as zeros or ones, but fluctuate according to incoming data.

— Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 30 July 2026

Definition of bits

Browse Nearby Words

spell out

spells

spells out

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Style

“Spells.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spells. Accessed 3 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of spells

noun

verb

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