Definition of interestnext
1
as in stake
a legal right to participation in the advantages, profits, and responsibility of something all of the workers at the food cooperative have an interest in it

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
3
4
as in special interest
a group of people with a common identifying interest that they seek to protect and promote the contention that the nation's financial interests have too much power

Synonyms & Similar Words

interest

2 of 2

verb

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 interest
Noun
Those interests might seem contradictory, but combining them is precisely what makes the work exciting. — New Atlas, 25 Oct. 2026 The program would not be funded by taxpayers, but instead by the interest charged to borrowers on their down payment loans, also referred to as second mortgages. — Audrey McGlinchy, Los Angeles Times, 24 Oct. 2026
Verb
The serious question of, frankly, human survival did not seem to interest them at all. — Ian Frazier, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026 Cranor said a person’s risk depends on how often they are targeted, their security habits, their ability to recognize suspicious messages, and whether the lure really interests them. — Tatiana Sataua, Fortune, 9 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for interest
Recent Examples of Synonyms for interest
Noun
  • Investors can buy and sell shares of the fund on the stock exchange, rather than having to secure a direct stake in those businesses.
    — Morgan Chittum, Fortune, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Colossal owns a stake and licenses its technology to the startup.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 23 Oct. 2026
Noun
  • Indeed, international economists, including those at the IMF, are urging Beijing to spend more on basic welfare — medical cover, unemployment benefits, pensions — to boost consumer spending power.
    — Andy Browne, semafor.com, 27 Oct. 2026
  • Critics accuse him of prioritising money and political relationships over human rights, sports integrity and the welfare of players.
    — Chas Newkey-Burden, TheWeek, 26 Oct. 2026
Noun
  • Plenty of Istanbul firms run on contracts, and plenty of London ones run on handshakes.
    — Ali Aydan, Forbes.com, 26 Oct. 2026
  • The married couple and co-executives sit atop CDR Companies — a network of affiliated firms that has grown into a juggernaut of government contracting with a national reach, from engineering to healthcare to emergency management.
    — Kate Payne, Miami Herald, 26 Oct. 2026
Noun
  • He’s seized on the attorney general’s abundant out-of-state travel — for official business, Ford says — to portray him as a high-flier beholden to the special interests that financed his jaunts.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 25 Oct. 2026
  • Both questions surrounding special interests underscored the extent to which the pair has been entrenched in politics for decades, even as Jackson presents himself as the outsider taking on the ultimate insider.
    — Ramsey Touchberry, The Washington Examiner, 9 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Still, there were a number of real-life court cases that intrigued him as a storyteller with a journalism background.
    — Tomris Laffly, Time, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Played by Steve Earle, Dale offers Lee a sandwich, but Lee is more intrigued by a novelty mug in the cab of his truck.
    — Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 22 Oct. 2026
Noun
  • Over the past two months, amid efforts to find what could be more than $20 billion to recapitalize insurance funds, Walter has sold his controlling interest in the Lakers and a minority share of Chelsea, the English Premier League club.
    — Bill Shaikin, Los Angeles Times, 24 Oct. 2026
  • The share of Americans who rate their lives 7 to 10 out of 10 barely moved, while the average fell more steeply.
    — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 24 Oct. 2026
Noun
  • From Montblanc to Leica Giannattasio, who grew up in Astoria, Queens, came to Leica from luxury goods, not cameras.
    — Catherina Gioino, Fortune, 21 Oct. 2026
  • With nearly 30 years of experience, Ken is an IT executive at Hermès, a French luxury design house of leather goods & lifestyle accessories.
    — Ken Feyder, Forbes.com, 20 Oct. 2026
Noun
  • Nguyen responded by starting POPS Worldwide, an entertainment company which produces, licenses, distributes, and monetizes digital content across platforms like YouTube and Facebook.
    — Angelica Ang, Fortune, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Sanders, one of the left’s leading critics of the AI industry, went a step beyond profit-sharing by suggesting this summer that its companies surrender half of their stock to the government.
    — Eleanor Mueller, semafor.com, 22 Oct. 2026

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Cite this Entry

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

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