strait

noun

Definition of straitnext
1
as in neck
a narrow body of water between two land masses as the ship headed east through the Strait of Gibraltar, Spain was on our left and Africa on our right

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in anguish
often straits plural a state of great suffering of body or mind in great straits over the loss of her mother's cherished necklace

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How does the noun strait differ from other similar words?

Some common synonyms of strait are contingency, crisis, emergency, exigency, juncture, pinch, and straits. While all these words mean "a critical or crucial time or state of affairs," strait, now commonly straits, applies to a troublesome situation from which escape is extremely difficult.

in dire straits

In what contexts can contingency take the place of strait?

In some situations, the words contingency and strait are roughly equivalent. However, contingency implies an emergency or exigency that is regarded as possible but uncertain of occurrence.

contingency plans

When might crisis be a better fit than strait?

The words crisis and strait are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, crisis applies to a juncture whose outcome will make a decisive difference.

a crisis of confidence

When is it sensible to use emergency instead of strait?

The meanings of emergency and strait largely overlap; however, emergency applies to a sudden unforeseen situation requiring prompt action to avoid disaster.

the presence of mind needed to deal with emergencies

Where would exigency be a reasonable alternative to strait?

While the synonyms exigency and strait are close in meaning, exigency stresses the pressure of restrictions or urgency of demands created by a special situation.

provide for exigencies

When would juncture be a good substitute for strait?

The words juncture and strait can be used in similar contexts, but juncture stresses the significant concurrence or convergence of events.

an important juncture in our country's history

How is pinch related to other words for strait?

Pinch implies urgency or pressure for action to a less intense degree than exigency or emergency.

come through in a pinch

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 strait Iran appears to be targeting commercial vessels conducting oil transfers to try to undermine vessels' ability to move energy through the strait, the Institute for the Study of War said Tuesday. — Arkansas Online, 14 Oct. 2026 The disruption has sent transits through the straits of Hormuz and Bab al-Mandeb falling sharply after mostly recovering to their pre-war levels. — David Goldman, CNN Money, 14 Oct. 2026 Senior advocacy groups say the COLA is a strong reminder of the financial straits of many older people. — ABC News, 14 Oct. 2026 Iran has repeatedly warned ships against trying to transit the strait without its approval. — Mark Osborne, CBS News, 14 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for strait
Recent Examples of Synonyms for strait
  1. neck
  2. anguish
  3. channel
  4. distress
  5. sound
  6. pain
  7. bay
  8. agony
Noun
  • Still, Ginger warms to him, confiding that she’s been followed around the ceremony by two men — a lanky guy with a neck tattoo and a brawnier guy with a penchant for Werther’s Originals.
    — Amanda Whiting, Vulture, 15 Oct. 2026
  • While filming a scene where Stallone got tackled by WWE legend Steve Austin, the stunt went wrong and left Stallone with dislocated shoulders and a fractured neck that required more than seven back surgeries.
    — Payton Turkeltaub, Variety, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of neck
Noun
  • Set to a downtempo bachata, the track features Lorén’s penetrating vocals filled with anguish at the impossible cycle of working endlessly to make ends meet.
    — Vanessa Diaz, Rolling Stone, 15 Oct. 2026
  • Abrams does yeoman’s work with a character stuck in a tight spot for most of the running time, constantly grunting and gasping with a mixture of anguish and exhaustion as his body gets progressively more beat up and broken.
    — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of anguish
Noun
  • Changing the nozzle instead of the color Creality's answer is called KliTek, a four-channel system that takes a slightly different approach.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 17 Oct. 2026
  • Rice most recently oversaw Disney's cable channels, news programming and coverage of major sporting events.
    — Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of channel
Noun
  • The patient's distress was intense at first, Dugas said, but diminished considerably by the second day.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 17 Oct. 2026
  • CoreWeave credit default swaps hit distress levels as investors soured on AI debt.
    — Kai Nicol-Schwarz, CNBC, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of distress
Noun
  • Ahead of rocking the Pond with its classic hits, the famed norteño band brought its signature sound and activism to NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert.
    — Carlos De Loera, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Advances robot Intelligence Neuron AI is a robot foundation model designed to combine visual perception, touch, sound, language, and memory to help robots perform complex tasks.
    — Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of sound
Noun
  • Like an Arthur Jafa montage, clips of joy and pain flash seamlessly in succession.
    — Kiana Mickles, Pitchfork, 13 Oct. 2026
  • Penix was hopeful to return and play in overtime, but during the Ravens' opening possession of the extra session, Penix said the pain was getting worse and worse as his body cooled down.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of pain
Noun
  • The complex will feature four payload bays, two encapsulation bays, and a dedicated area for processing multiple payloads together.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 17 Oct. 2026
  • That giant, fully reusable rocket finally reached orbit on its 14th launch in September, but the version currently flying is designed only to deploy Starlink V3 satellites through a thin slot of a payload-bay door.
    — Rob Pegoraro, PC Magazine, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of bay
Noun
  • His personal agony fused with despair over the military government, which continued to crack down on democracy activists.
    — E. Tammy Kim, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026
  • Now, the defining image of the death penalty in 2026 is a woman strapped to a gurney, in unbearable agony, being tortured by prison officials tasked with killing her but unable to do so.
    — Maya Foa, Chicago Tribune, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of agony

Browse Nearby Words

strains
strait
straiten
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Cite this Entry

“Strait.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/strait. Accessed 19 Oct. 2026.

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