TENDENCIES Synonyms: 93 Similar and Opposite Words

tendencies

noun

plural of tendency

as in ways

an established pattern of behavior a tendency to drop things a tendency to make snap judgments

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Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in trends

a prevailing or general movement or inclination we'll be seeing a tendency for skirt lengths to get shorter this coming season

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as in inclinations

a habitual attraction to some activity or thing a youth with a natural tendency toward arts and crafts instead of sports

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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 tendencies Wanda’s obsessive drive to succeed ignites her darker side and self-destructive tendencies that led to her drug addiction. — Los Angeles Times, 1 Sep. 2026 Your more shadowy tendencies are liable to pop out around this time, particularly the ones that stem from an insecure attachment style. — Steph Koyfman, Condé Nast Traveler, 30 Aug. 2026 Behaviorally, some of these markers could also mask psychopathic tendencies. — Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2026 Through its complex depiction of a bloodthirsty mob, M explores the disturbingly violent tendencies inherent in human nature. — Wesley Stenzel, Entertainment Weekly, 21 Aug. 2026 This sense of threat can trigger authoritarian tendencies, including support for taking away civil liberties like the ability to give public speeches or run for political office from disliked others. — Paul Djupe, The Conversation, 20 Aug. 2026 The New York Young Republicans Club’s Nazi tendencies are well known. — Ali Breland, The Atlantic, 20 Aug. 2026 The group will have paramount responsibility in a UCLA offense set to feature optionality and run-pass-option tendencies. — Aaron Heisen, Daily News, 17 Aug. 2026 Then, over the last several weeks and months, the self-destructive tendencies and nature of the WNBA organization, its coaches, and fans has reared its ugly head yet again. — Ian Miller Outkick, FOXNews.com, 16 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for tendencies

Noun

Although not quite as polished on the racial politics front, Lanterns’s third episode is no less intriguing, as an hour of television dedicated not only to answering pressing questions but fleshing out its lead character in disturbing ways.

— Siddhant Adlakha, Vulture, 31 Aug. 2026
OpenAI's investigation, released this week, went considerably further, describing agents that found unauthorized ways to communicate, collaborate and delegate work while attempting to accomplish their objectives.

— Emil Sayegh, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2026

Definition of ways

Noun

Putin will eventually leave office, whether by death, illness, or—against all observable inclinations—stepping aside.

— Julian G. Waller, Foreign Affairs, 7 Aug. 2026
People with gene variants that affect these inclinations may also be at a higher risk of developing obesity and type 2 diabetes, researchers found.

— Emily Kay Votruba, EverydayHealth.com, 28 July 2026

Definition of inclinations

Noun

Here was a way to fix inside digital resin some of her habits and propensities, through the words of three of her daughters.

— Eythana Miller, The Dial, 23 June 2026
When creating their own version of the character, the developers at IOI sought to emphasize that insubordination as a gameplay tool, grounding it in this Bond’s age-specific propensities.

— Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 28 May 2026

Definition of propensities

Noun

In Humboldt County’s North Spit, near Eureka, tides were 9 inches higher than forecast.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 24 Aug. 2026
The offerings of any decent oyster shucker will change according to the seasons and the tides and the shoals and the shipping lines and the harbor freight and the rush-hour traffic on the interstate.

— Helen Rosner, New Yorker, 23 Aug. 2026

Definition of tides

Noun

For this class, the premise is that your purpose in life lies to the intersection of your values, your aptitudes and your interests.

— Dana Taylor, USA Today, 6 May 2026
This model reflects Japan’s long-standing corporate culture, which prioritizes new hires for their general potential—their aptitudes and aspirations, as opposed to their current skill sets or university majors—and then trains them on the job.

— GRACIA LIU-FARRER, Foreign Affairs, 18 Nov. 2025

Definition of aptitudes

Noun

If people are working from different assumptions, stop and clarify the system before everyone charges off in opposite directions.

— Tarot.com, New York Daily News, 1 Sep. 2026
On an infinite graph — an abstraction where the graph extends forever in all directions — one or several infinite seas will dominate.

— Leila Sloman, Quanta Magazine, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of directions

Noun

As opposed to infantile regression, the oceanic feeling can also be understood as a means of recapturing a repressed sense of relation, connection, affinities.

— George Baker, Artforum, 1 Sep. 2026
Marino also has a penchant for seeing affinities in the work of two artists who paths likely never crossed, as is the case with his two-person exhibition of Parsons and Accardi.

— Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of affinities

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tended (to)

tendencies

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“Tendencies.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tendencies. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of tendencies

noun

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