CLOUDS Synonyms: 90 Similar and Opposite Words

clouds 1 of 2

noun

plural of cloud

as in shadows

an overspreading element that produces an atmosphere of gloom all day we were under a cloud until we heard the good news

Synonyms & Similar Words

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clouds

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of cloud

as in obscures

to make dark, dim, or indistinct the diner's dark interior, clouded with smoke and grease

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in confuses

to make (something) unclear to the understanding cloud the issue with obscure statistics

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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 clouds

Noun

Tall thunderstorm clouds will be affected by those changing winds and rotate. — Jamie Ross, Washington Post, 21 Oct. 2026 For now, Monday still looks mainly dry across Dallas–Fort Worth, with a few more clouds and afternoon temperatures generally in the lower to middle 80s. — Michael Autovino, CBS News, 20 Oct. 2026 Most of these fragments were generated by explosions and orbital collisions that shattered satellites and used rocket stages into clouds of dangerous debris. — Tereza Pultarova, Space.com, 20 Oct. 2026 The welcome sight of clouds brought me back to one of my favorite Vietnamese restaurants, Pho Hue Oi in Redondo Beach. — Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2026 High temperatures will warm just a tad Tuesday with a few light clouds still streaming through occasionally with mostly sunny skies. — Sean MacAday, Sacbee.com, 12 Oct. 2026 There’s the big rock, and here comes the mothership and its clouds and all this color behind it. — Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 10 Oct. 2026 Specialist neoclouds can offer more flexibility than the larger GPU clouds, which often require upfront payments and long-term commitments. — Jordan Novet, CNBC, 10 Oct. 2026

Verb

There’s a running joke about the MCU having the most magical water that clouds everything. — Destiny Jackson, Deadline, 15 Aug. 2026 The United States’ relationship with its partners in the region also clouds its messaging and invites escalation. — Erik Lin-Greenberg, Foreign Affairs, 31 July 2026 Much of the debris that clouds the water in this technique is leftover detergent and fabric softener that build up in fabric fibers over time, according to the article. — Betsy Cribb Watson, Southern Living, 12 July 2026 The recent explosion of Blue Origin’s New Glenn rocket on its launch pad in Florida also clouds ULA’s return-to-flight plans for Vulcan. — Stephen Clark, ArsTechnica, 7 July 2026 Mamdani has done the same, but Sherman’s own bias against Muslims clouds his judgment. — Voice Of The People, New York Daily News, 29 June 2026 When Kendi began experiencing slight cloudiness in her right eye, veterinarians identified the issue head-on — cataracts, a condition that clouds the eye's lens and can lead to blindness if left untreated. — Ingrid Vasquez, PEOPLE, 9 June 2026 Ambiguity clouds the conversation and risks leaving your protégé more confused than enlightened. — Chip Bell, Forbes.com, 15 May 2026 Soap scum clouds the shower glass. — Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Charlotte Observer, 30 Apr. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for clouds

Noun

Visions, enhanced with shadows and emotion, came to life on marble through sketching the stone and chiseling and carving entirely by hand.

— Sofia Celeste, Footwear News, 26 Oct. 2026
This refusal to look directly at the shadows is all the more aggravating given how often The Mosquito Bowl pats itself on the back for being clear-eyed.

— Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 23 Oct. 2026

Definition of shadows

Verb

Additionally, the metaphor of the kill switch also obscures the human decisions involved in the responsibility and oversight of an out-of-control model.

— Trent Wintermeier, The Conversation, 19 Oct. 2026
While the planets in our solar system are still visible, sky glow obscures more distant objects, such as fainter stars.

— Chris McMullen, Space.com, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of obscures

Verb

The legal system dehumanizes her, the support group confuses her, and one of her friends painfully disappoints her.

— Carey Purcell, Vogue, 2 Oct. 2026
This confuses each Nyota but also those around them, who note that the Nyotas have rather quickly assumed new hairstyles but also that neither is behaving quite like herself.

— Keith Phipps, Vulture, 24 Sep. 2026

Definition of confuses

Noun

Upper hazes on gas giants have been studied ad nauseam, but microphysical processes beneath the main cloud layer remain an enigma.

— Elizabeth Rayne, ArsTechnica, 1 Oct. 2026
The scientists also want to gain a more detailed understanding of the three-dimensional structure of the decagon's clouds, hazes, winds and temperatures.

— Charles Q. Choi, Space.com, 2 Sep. 2026

Definition of hazes

Verb

Having first revealed her AMD diagnosis in 2012, which is a disease that blurs a person’s central vision by causing damage to the macula, Dench has discussed her potential retirement in recent years.

— Glenn Garner, Deadline, 23 Oct. 2026
And again, that just blurs the lines between what things are supposed to be.

— Brian Hiatt, Rolling Stone, 23 Oct. 2026

Definition of blurs

Verb

But whether in Frankfurt or, later, Weimar — where Soviet officials are as keen to canonize Thomas — this father and daughter aren’t simply driving through Germany but taking a tour across fascism’s long shadow, which still darkens the world.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 23 Oct. 2026
Instead, the surrounding sky darkens, increasing the contrast until the pale daytime moon seems to switch on at dusk and grow increasingly brilliant.

— Jamie Carter, Space.com, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of darkens

Verb

The union on Tuesday announced a partnership with Cloak, a software company that obfuscates documents to AI models but not human readers.

— Katie Kilkenny, HollywoodReporter, 20 Oct. 2026
Instead, Cubans turn to the internet, reading abroad what their government obfuscates or denies at home.

— Joseph J. Gonzalez, The Conversation, 9 July 2026

Definition of obfuscates

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cloud nine

clouds

cloudy

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Style

“Clouds.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/clouds. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of clouds

noun

verb

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