roil

verb

ˈrȯi(-ə)l How to pronounce roil (audio)
Definition of roilnext
1
as in to swirl
to be in a state of violent rolling motion the waters of the gulf tossed and roiled as the hurricane surged toward the shore

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to anger
to make angry the clerk's brusque refusal of her request roiled her enough to prompt a complaint to his supervisor

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 roil Skip to main content Country legend, activist, and all-around good guy Willie Nelson has weighed in on the data-center debate that is currently roiling America’s city council meetings and political races. — Alex Suskind, Pitchfork, 28 July 2026 Indeed, more than a year after the program was cut, the debate over what happened—and who is at fault—continues to roil. — Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 23 July 2026 Carson knew that Belafonte would address issues then roiling the country that would, that summer, explode into riots. — Joshua Jelly-Schapiro, Vanity Fair, 21 July 2026 When picked, the department’s new top official will inherit a police force roiled by controversy and lawsuits in recent years. — Kendrick Calfee, Kansas City Star, 21 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for roil
Recent Examples of Synonyms for roil
  1. swirl
  2. anger
  3. churn
  4. infuriate
  5. boil
  6. enrage
  7. seethe
  8. annoy
Verb
  • Svelte white waitresses in generic Asian garb swirled around us.
    — Karan Mahajan, New Yorker, 8 Aug. 2026
  • Rumors swirled about Alito’s retirement plans after NPR published and then retracted an article by reporter Nina Totenberg that Alito would be retiring from his role on the bench at the end of the court’s 2025-26 term.
    — Molly Parks, The Washington Examiner, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of swirl
Verb
  • Israel’s far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich faces a fight for political survival in elections in October after angering his fellow West Bank settlers by voting not to punish ultra-Orthodox Jews who refuse to serve in the military.
    — Reuters, NBC news, 7 Aug. 2026
  • The actor also objected to being a locker room scene that required full-frontal nudity, which allegedly angered Russell, TMZ reported.
    — Martha Ross, Mercury News, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of anger
Verb
  • Participants will tackle a 5K trail run while churning their own ice cream.
    — Jaclyn Cosgrove, Los Angeles Times, 6 Aug. 2026
  • The stock ran to a 52-week high of $219 but has spent the past several weeks churning in a range, unable to clear $218 on multiple attempts.
    — Josh Brown,Sean Russo, CNBC, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of churn
Verb
  • But some one-time backers have been infuriated by his support last month for a law that would prevent the arrest of ultra-Orthodox Jews for avoiding the military draft.
    — Reuters, NBC news, 7 Aug. 2026
  • The trade infuriated fans and likely delighted the MLB executives and owners who are thirsty to implement a hard salary cap in the next collective bargaining agreement.
    — Jon Greenberg, New York Times, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of infuriate
Verb
  • Officials say all customers in Conyers or north of I-20 should boil all water used for drinking, cooking, making ice, brushing teeth, or preparing food.
    — Dan Raby, CBS News, 5 Aug. 2026
  • Consider the many different editions of New York Yankees dynasties that boiled the blood of fans across America.
    — Steve Buckley, New York Times, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of boil
Verb
  • North Carolina and Bill Belichick got zero, no doubt enraging girlfriend Jordon Hudson.
    — Greg Cote August 2, Miami Herald, 2 Aug. 2026
  • Fauci pleaded the Fifth a number of times, which appears to have enraged a lot of people.
    — Rob Crilly, The Washington Examiner, 31 July 2026
Definition of enrage
Verb
  • In the very human-scale role of Chef, all that glamour and pageantry seethes just beneath the skin.
    — Helen Rosner, New Yorker, 2 Aug. 2026
  • Ser Criston Cole, more than perhaps any other character in this story, is seething with resentment.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026
Definition of seethe
Verb
  • At the Glenn-Mills trial in Los Angeles, Meta attorneys repeatedly hammered witnesses about the lack of a listing — at times appearing to annoy jurors and test the patience of the court.
    — Sonja Sharp, Los Angeles Times, 8 Aug. 2026
  • During his last visit to Tehran in 2012, Aryan Diba enjoyed the sweeping hospitality of the city, but was annoyed when he and a group of friends were disrupted by local authorities while talking to a group of women at a local fast food joint.
    — Colin Wrenn, Denver Post, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of annoy

Browse Nearby Words

roguishness
roil
roiled
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Cite this Entry

“Roil.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/roil. Accessed 13 Aug. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of roil for Spanish Speakers

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