MAYHEM Synonyms: 76 Similar and Opposite Words

mayhem

noun

Definition of mayhem

as in violence

actions that hurt people and destroy things; a scene or situation that involves a lot of violence Movies seem to be filled with murder and mayhem these days. a criminal who escaped from prison and caused mayhem

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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 mayhem The mayhem of recent weeks — with mass arrests and hundreds of injured — has sparked an uproar in a country steeped in a centuries-old culture of protest. — ABC News, 16 Oct. 2026 After years of bootlegging, gambling, prostitution, and racketeering, Capone went down not for murder or mayhem but for failing to pay taxes. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 14 Oct. 2026 Investigators have not released a motive for the mayhem, and autopsies were scheduled Tuesday for all three people. — Corky Siemaszko, NBC news, 13 Oct. 2026 Local and state election officials are preparing for mayhem or interference by the federal government. — Justin Levitt, The Conversation, 13 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for mayhem

Recent Examples of Synonyms for mayhem

Noun

Garcia and other commissioners complained Miami-Dade was cashing in on a game that glorifies street violence and crime in Miami.

— Douglas Hanks, Miami Herald, 20 Oct. 2026
More than 2,500 people had been taken into police custody by Monday evening, Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin said, after violence that included the burning of a historic town hall in Limoges, a city in central France.

— Aidan Stretch, CBS News, 20 Oct. 2026

Definition of violence

Noun

Dupuy-Spencer had a reputation for clear-eyed renderings of both the tenderness and the brutality of our world; here, darker forces prevail.

— Dan Stahl, New Yorker, 23 Oct. 2026
However, Gates, who resigned in the wake of the 1992 LA Riots, was also viewed as leaving a legacy of police brutality and racial tension.

— Tom Wait, CBS News, 22 Oct. 2026

Definition of brutality

Noun

Not only were LaMelo Ball and Miles Bridges absent after high-profile summertime trades, but returnees Kon Knueppel and Coby White were also missing because of injury.

— Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 22 Oct. 2026
In addition to a person in his car dying from injuries sustained in the crash, another passenger was severely hurt, the release said.

— Laura Bauer, Kansas City Star, 21 Oct. 2026

Definition of injury

Noun

French President Emmanuel Macron called the shooting a racist terror attack, saying people were targeted due to their religion and the color of their skin.

— Mithil Aggarwal, NBC news, 23 Oct. 2026
Iran's proxy gang - the Yemeni terror group known as the Houthis - has recently killed civilians in Saudi Arabia with attacks on the airport.

— Brian Sullivan, CNBC, 22 Oct. 2026

Definition of terror

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mayhem

mazard

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

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Synonyms of mayhem

noun

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