animals

noun

plural of animal
as in creatures
one of the lower animals as distinguished from human beings we saw a lot of animals at the wildlife refuge—cranes, alligators, deer, a fox, even an armadillo

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 animals The data gathered can help understand what animals are being hit and help prevent future strikes. — Amanda Jackson, CNN Money, 11 Aug. 2026 Scientists have taken advantage of this DNA time machine for one of the world's most endangered marine animals, revealing a story that can't be told by population counts alone. — Melissa Cristina Márquez, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026 Those funds will go toward supporting the lions and the other animals that call the zoo and aquarium home. — Finch Walker, USA Today, 10 Aug. 2026 This event wiped out much of the life on the planet and paved the way for the diversification of new groups of animals. — The Conversation, Fortune, 10 Aug. 2026 If women constitute the film’s heart, animals form its pulse. — Manahil Tahira, Variety, 10 Aug. 2026 And they were designed by an AI model that wasn’t trained on viruses that could infect plants or animals. — Stephanie Pappas, Scientific American, 10 Aug. 2026 It is commonly spread through tick bites and deer flies that have fed on infected animals, such as wild rabbits, hares, muskrats and rodents. — Mary Kekatos, ABC News, 3 Aug. 2026 Canines, including dogs and coyotes, rank as the deadliest animals in five states. — Bonny Chu, FOXNews.com, 3 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for animals
  1. creatures
  2. beasts
Noun
  • Bowerbirds, puffer fish and other creatures meticulously decorate their homes.
    — Dina Cheney, Washington Post, 8 Aug. 2026
  • Stitch together creatures to build an army of land, sea and sky monsters and compete with your family to defeat the dangerous armies of incoming babies.
    — BestReviews, Mercury News, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of creatures
Noun
  • But over the course of numerous sequels and reboots, the franchise largely shifted away from resonant character drama in favor of high-octane action sequences and increasingly monstrous beasts.
    — Megan McCluskey, Time, 14 Aug. 2026
  • But on Monday one of the bigger beasts of Wall Street, Goldman Sachs Chief Economist Jan Hatzius, came out guns blazing at Warsh.
    — Jim Edwards, Fortune, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of beasts

Browse Nearby Words

animal magnetism
animals
animal spirits
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Cite this Entry

“Animals.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/animals. Accessed 16 Aug. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of animals for Spanish Speakers

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