rape 1 of 2

1
as in violation
the act of forcing a person to engage in sexual activity and especially intercourse an international law defining rape as a war crime

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in kidnaping
the unlawful or forcible carrying away of a person or animal the legend of the rape of the Sabine women by the ancient Romans was frequently depicted in classical art

Synonyms & Similar Words

rape

2 of 2

verb

as in to violate
to engage in sexual activity and especially intercourse with a person unwilling or unable to give consent the defendant accused of raping the victim

Synonyms & Similar 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 rape
Noun
Meanwhile, Tristan is facing 11 charges including rape, actual bodily harm, and human trafficking, which are connected to allegations from a sole victim. Mya Abraham, VIBE.com, 29 May 2025 Ventura filed a federal lawsuit against Combs in 2023, accusing Combs of rape and physical abuse. Cara Tabachnick, CBS News, 28 May 2025 Andrew Tate’s charges include rape, actual bodily harm, human trafficking and controlling prostitution for gain, while Tristan Tate is charged with rape, actual bodily harm and human trafficking. Conor Murray, Forbes.com, 28 May 2025 The charges span rape, actual bodily harm, human trafficking and controlling prostitution for gain, prosecutors said. Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 28 May 2025 The Crown Prosecution Service said Andrew, 38, is charged with rape, human trafficking, actual bodily harm and controlling prostitution for gain related to allegations from three women, according to BBC, The Telegraph, and ABC News. Nicole Acosta, People.com, 28 May 2025 Andrew Tate and his brother, Tristan, have been charged with 21 crimes in the U.K., including rape, actual bodily harm and human trafficking, prosecutors have said. Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 28 May 2025 Follow along for live coverage of the Diddy trial Ventura, a singer and model, just spent nearly a week testifying in Combs' trial, recounting allegations of rape and abuse at his hands. Rebecca Cohen, NBC news, 28 May 2025 There also is a warrant for his arrest in St. Tammany Parish for second-degree rape, second-degree kidnapping, domestic abuse involving strangulation and violation of a protective order involving battery stemming from an incident in November, the parish's sheriff's office told USA TODAY. N'dea Yancey-Bragg, USA Today, 28 May 2025
Verb
According to LaBella’s lawsuit, Costner, the director, improvised a scene in which Hunt’s character would be raped. Gene Maddaus, Variety, 28 May 2025 In the meantime, four other women in the U.K. have continued with a separate lawsuit against Andrew Tate, accusing him in a civil proceeding of having raped and physically abused them, and insisting police and prosecutors had failed them by declining to pursue criminal charges several years ago. Willem Marx, NPR, 28 May 2025 In that case, he was accused of raping, beating and choking a 28-year-old woman in a Courtlandt Ave. Emma Seiwell, New York Daily News, 24 May 2025 In general, this case presents no special facts or legal circumstances, only the banal horror of a man being wrongfully loaded onto a bus and sent back to a county where he was allegedly just raped and kidnapped. James Bickerton, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 May 2025 Trump has also taken aim at ABC News, which agreed to pay $15 million to Trump’s presidential library to settle a lawsuit over anchor George Stephanopoulos’ inaccurate on-air assertion that the president-elect had been found civilly liable for raping writer E. Jean Carroll. Greg Braxton, Los Angeles Times, 23 May 2025 In 2022, he was accused of drugging and raping a woman on a yacht in 2020 in a lawsuit filed in a Los Angeles County court. Patrick Smith, NBC news, 21 May 2025 The 14-year-old was raped and… impregnated, and the sponsor ultimately was arrested. Audrey Conklin, FOXNews.com, 20 May 2025 Fred and Rose West were accused of raping, torturing, and killing at least 12 people over more than 20 years. Monica Mercuri, Forbes.com, 16 May 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rape
Noun
  • In the meantime, the city has received several reports of property violations in recent years on 925 Grand: piles of bird droppings, falling debris, people entering through unsecured entrances.
    Chris Higgins, Kansas City Star, 26 May 2025
  • The Crusaders held the lead the entire second set until one of two late center line violations resulted in a 23-22 deficit.
    Tim Meehan, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 May 2025
Verb
  • In Minnesota, leaders are bracing for the possibility that Trump will pardon Chauvin, who is serving concurrent state and federal prison sentences for murder, violating Floyd's constitutional rights and other crimes.
    N'dea Yancey-Bragg, USA Today, 25 May 2025
  • The refrigerator was not cold enough and two cats roamed the shop, violating state food code.
    Eleanor Nash, Kansas City Star, 24 May 2025
Noun
  • Beijing has also softened its regulatory assault on Chinese technology companies and the property sector.
    Jacky Wong, WSJ, 6 Feb. 2023
  • Zelenskyy has warned for weeks that Moscow aims to step up its assault after about two months of virtual stalemate along the front line that stretches across the south and east.
    Reuters, NBC News, 31 Jan. 2023
Noun
  • Authorities investigated the case for six years and later determined that Sherri had fabricated the abduction and had been hiding out at her ex-boyfriend James Reyes' apartment in Costa Mesa, Calif.
    Caroline Blair, People.com, 26 May 2025
  • The name for this comes from the 2006 Adam Walsh Child Safety Act, enacted to prevent child abductions.
    Duncan Madden, Forbes.com, 23 May 2025
Verb
  • That gives you a puncher’s chance against a team that runs on makes and misses and forces defensive miscues by sheer virtue of its pace of play.
    Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 30 May 2025
  • The prospect of a New York team with an identity forged from refusing to yield under pressure forcing an anxiety-inducing Game 7 at Madison Square Garden looms large.
    Bobby Krivitsky, Forbes.com, 30 May 2025

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Rape.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rape. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on rape

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!