aroused 1 of 2

adjective

1
as in roused

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words
2
as in excited

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

aroused

2 of 2

verb

past tense of arouse
1
as in woke
to cause to stop sleeping the rooster's crow aroused me from my deep sleep

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in awoke
to cease to be asleep set the alarm so we would arouse at 5:00 a.m.

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in provoked
to rouse to strong feeling or action the court's controversial decision aroused many to protest and to lobby the legislature for a constitutional amendment

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 aroused
Verb
The song was inspired by his boyfriend, who, when aroused, came over his head. — Harry Tafoya, Pitchfork, 9 July 2026 As virality goes, this is not a big number, but the passion that the account has aroused dwarfs its reach. — David Kamp, New Yorker, 29 June 2026 Overview The emergence of teleSUR has aroused significant interest due to its uniqueness of being the first regional television channel purely financed by more than three Latin American states. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 26 May 2026 Bell is a revelation as the nebbish, envious and conflictedly aroused Niall — a desperate man hiding from others and himself. — Randy Myers, Mercury News, 22 Apr. 2026 This aroused suspicion and eventually led to searches of Kamnik’s phone, computer, and external hard drive, which revealed a massive trove of illicit material. — Nate Anderson, ArsTechnica, 9 Apr. 2026 And each movement aroused an urge to move in the woman lying above, as if an avalanche of imperceptible but palpable vibrations had been triggered. — Literary Hub, 7 Apr. 2026 There, the tortoise became visibly aroused seeing another tortoise. — Graham Womack, Sacbee.com, 4 Apr. 2026 When a roadster with a rumble seat came out of the fire road and turned west toward Clam Lake, the wardens’ suspicions were aroused. — Dave Duffey, Outdoor Life, 26 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for aroused
  1. awakened
  2. excited
  3. woke
  4. awoke
  5. provoked
  6. horny
  7. roused
  8. encouraged
Adjective
  • Angine desperately returns to the store, again and again, to get her fix from Malaise, her face reddening from blood just below the surface, a canvas of her awakened desire.
    — The New Yorker, New Yorker, 21 Nov. 2025
Definition of awakened
Adjective
  • But the person most excited to play catch with his father, Ron, was Twins manager Derek Shelton, who wasn’t sure his arm would be capable after throwing Buxton batting practice Monday.
    — Dan Hayes, New York Times, 14 Aug. 2026
  • Even still, the filmmaker is excited to let Edinburgh audiences begin probing this surprisingly affecting piece on loss and extraterrestrial life.
    — Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of excited
Verb
  • Continue reading … HOT AIR – AOC tries to laugh off 'crazy' woke era as thing of the past, but conservatives aren't amused.
    — , FOXNews.com, 11 Aug. 2026
  • Aston Martin specialist Nicholas Mee & Company recently woke the car from a near 40-year slumber to return it to road-going condition.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of woke
Verb
  • According to the department, sisters Ava, 5, and Mia, 9, awoke and saw the fire coming from their neighbors’ home.
    — David Chiu, PEOPLE, 19 Aug. 2026
  • The fireworks came instead from the Dodgers' slumbering offense, which awoke with Max Muncy's three-run double and Freddie Freeman's RBI single after Skubal departed.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of awoke
Verb
  • The sources added that the relationship breakdown also provoked serious concerns about the wellbeing of the senior colleague.
    — Jake Kanter, Deadline, 13 Aug. 2026
  • Even the smaller discoveries, like the shovel found in the rock area, provoked the kind of reflection that Idaho Public Archaeology hopes to spur.
    — Nicole Blanchard, Idaho Statesman, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of provoked
Adjective
  • White's bad-boy heartthrob status has given way to many horny memes, as well as curiosity about his love life.
    — Christina Perrier, InStyle, 25 June 2026
  • Her music owned up to being horny, garish, and superficial, but could scan as thin or cheap when held up to other kinds of ethical or political scrutiny.
    — Harry Tafoya, Pitchfork, 2 June 2026
Definition of horny
Verb
  • Around three in the morning, after the evening Kenzo had died, the woman had suddenly woken up, having been roused by the sound of water coming from the house next door.
    — Cynthia Zarin, Harpers Magazine, 4 Aug. 2026
  • One by one, as if roused from a trance, my fellow staffers rose from their workstations and filed to the exit.
    — Danny Heitman, Christian Science Monitor, 31 July 2026
Definition of roused
Verb
  • Students avoided asking questions that could be considered controversial, and teachers no longer encouraged open discussion.
    — Fatima Faizi, NPR, 14 Aug. 2026
  • Patients should be encouraged to ask who manufactured the product, why it is being recommended, whether FDA has evaluated it and how to report an adverse reaction.
    — Washington Post, Washington Post, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of encouraged

Browse Nearby Words

arouse
aroused
arouses
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Aroused.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/aroused. Accessed 21 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on aroused

Nglish: Translation of aroused for Spanish Speakers

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of rigmarole

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

How to Pronounce the Trickiest Menu Items

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
image of a green cube out of place in a lineup of red spheres
Odd Word Out: Synonyms Vol. 2 Quiz Figure out which word isn't like the others.
See All