RAVEL Synonyms: 27 Similar and Opposite Words

ravel

verb

Definition of ravel

as in to unravel

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

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 ravel So somehow, Grace, Sacha and Robert end up accompanying Art and Charlotte to Norfolk, and all of their stories unravel and ravel at once. — Ellen Akins, Washington Post, 14 Aug. 2020 Her eight novels, including the 2016 bestseller Commonwealth, tend to focus on families or groups raveling and unraveling over decades. — Kaitlin Menza, Condé Nast Traveler, 27 Sep. 2019

Recent Examples of Synonyms for ravel

Verb

Using data from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), astronomers have unraveled some of the atmospheric secrets of a bizarre, blisteringly hot world that has the consistency of marshmallow.

— Robert Lea, Space.com, 16 Oct. 2026
About 10 years ago, her life began to unravel after the loss of her husband.

— Erin Jones, CBS News, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of unravel

Verb

But regulatory reform alone will not unwind the private-market shift.

— Jeff Jacobs, Forbes.com, 16 Oct. 2026
Attendees took breaks to unwind with premium wellness experiences that included massages from Sonar Mobile Spa, ear seeding from Solstice and red light therapy from Luma Dose.

— Helen Carefoot, Flow Space, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of unwind

Verb

Pawlikowski’s mother and father, also named Zula and Wiktor, whose unmanageable love had kept them tangled and disentangled for decades, took their own lives in 1989, as the Cold War that had cast its chill upon their time was beginning to thaw.

— Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2026
His remarks escalated a confrontation over New York’s efforts to disentangle local police from federal immigration enforcement.

— María Luisa Paúl, USA Today, 2 Sep. 2026

Definition of disentangle

Verb

The chemistry prize recognized two scientists for untangling mysterious mirror images in molecules, a discovery that has been used to develop countless drugs.

— ABC News, ABC News, 8 Oct. 2026
The reason why is a mystery—scientists are still working to untangle whether a healthy gut drives longevity or is a by-product of it.

— Jackie Flynn Mogensen, Scientific American, 5 Oct. 2026

Definition of untangle

Browse Nearby Words

raved

ravel

raveled

See all Nearby Words

Articles Related to ravel

Cite this Entry

Style

“Ravel.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ravel. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of ravel

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

An Overview of the Contronym 'Overlook'

'Un-': You Don't Always Have to Be So...

A Ravel of Knitting Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

jilt

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Can' vs. 'May'

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

Popular in Wordplay

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Did 'orange' the fruit or the color come first?

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Popular

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Games & Quizzes