as in gazed
to look long and hard in wonder or surprise
her friends stared in disbelief upon seeing her walking arm in arm with her ex-husband
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Recent Examples of stared
Colorado stared at a 3-0 deficit after the first intermission.
—
Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 14 May 2026
Sashko stared at the fingers for a long time.
—James Verini, The Atlantic, 12 May 2026
When Steve entered the room, John stared at him from across the hardwood table.
—Geoffrey Cain, Vanity Fair, 11 May 2026
One smirked while the others stared me down.
—Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 11 May 2026
Hayes, sitting at the end of the bench with his arms folded across his chest, stared blankly ahead and shook his head slowly.
—Los Angeles Times, 10 May 2026
Four days earlier, Kittel, a rider who stared both success and failure in the face, spoke about how the team would handle moments like these.
—Jacob Whitehead, New York Times, 9 May 2026
Ramzan looked to her, pleading, but Sakeena’s eyes only stared into their reflection on the glass patio door.
—Literary Hub, 4 May 2026
The horse practically stared the trainer in the eye, conveying a message that Baffert immediately interpreted.
—Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 1 May 2026
Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 14 May 2026
Sashko stared at the fingers for a long time.
—James Verini, The Atlantic, 12 May 2026
When Steve entered the room, John stared at him from across the hardwood table.
—Geoffrey Cain, Vanity Fair, 11 May 2026
One smirked while the others stared me down.
—Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 11 May 2026
Hayes, sitting at the end of the bench with his arms folded across his chest, stared blankly ahead and shook his head slowly.
—Los Angeles Times, 10 May 2026
Four days earlier, Kittel, a rider who stared both success and failure in the face, spoke about how the team would handle moments like these.
—Jacob Whitehead, New York Times, 9 May 2026
Ramzan looked to her, pleading, but Sakeena’s eyes only stared into their reflection on the glass patio door.
—Literary Hub, 4 May 2026
The horse practically stared the trainer in the eye, conveying a message that Baffert immediately interpreted.
—Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 1 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stared
Verb
-
In the lab, the human art got higher ratings than the AI imagery, and people gazed at the human art for longer.—
Stephanie Pappas,
Scientific American,
14 May 2026
-
In failing to meaningfully contend with its context, the show veers dangerously close to repeating the mistakes of notorious exhibitions that flatten non-Western artworks into objects meant to be gazed upon.—
Alex Greenberger,
ARTnews.com,
4 May 2026
Verb
-
Locals complained tourist gawked at them or traipsed through their yards.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
23 Apr. 2026
-
Onlookers gawked from the balconies of nearby condo towers.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
13 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Bob’s grandfather peered through the fence at League Park to catch a glimpse of Game 1 of the 1920 World Series.—
Zack Meisel,
New York Times,
16 May 2026
-
Until Korolev peered at it a few years ago, no one had ever seen the mineral in nature.—
James Dinneen,
Scientific American,
14 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Stared.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stared. Accessed 21 May. 2026.
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