as in warning
something that tells of approaching danger or risk
his high blood pressure was a wake-up call that he needed to do something about his health
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Recent Examples of wake-up call
The persistence of that finding should be a wake-up call for employers already battling high turnover and labor shortages.
—
Wire Services, Dallas News, 22 Mar. 2023
Those efforts show the pandemic has been a wake-up call, Horowitz said.
—Rachel Scott, ABC News, 22 Mar. 2023
Texas is on an entirely different level than those teams and had a bit of a wake-up call against Penn State.
—Jeremy Cluff, The Arizona Republic, 20 Mar. 2023
Most important, the Fed and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) got a wake-up call that their oversight of middle-size banks has been dangerously lax.
—Doyle McManus, Los Angeles Times, 19 Mar. 2023
See All Example Sentences for wake-up call
Wire Services, Dallas News, 22 Mar. 2023
Those efforts show the pandemic has been a wake-up call, Horowitz said.
—Rachel Scott, ABC News, 22 Mar. 2023
Texas is on an entirely different level than those teams and had a bit of a wake-up call against Penn State.
—Jeremy Cluff, The Arizona Republic, 20 Mar. 2023
Most important, the Fed and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) got a wake-up call that their oversight of middle-size banks has been dangerously lax.
—Doyle McManus, Los Angeles Times, 19 Mar. 2023
See All Example Sentences for wake-up call
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wake-up call
Noun
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The widespread nature of these outages is echoed by the Federal Aviation Administration’s own warnings.—
Melanie Hicken,
CNN Money,
21 May 2025
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How to act during strong winds Take shelter: Immediately go inside a sturdy building during a high wind warning or severe thunderstorm warning and move to an interior room or basement.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
21 May 2025
Noun
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Missing the preparation mark Another red flag: walking in unprepared.—
Julia Korn,
Forbes.com,
26 May 2025
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However, Snow began noticing a few red flags right off the bat.—
Meredith Wilshere,
People.com,
25 May 2025
Noun
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Witnesses said that Pelkey was at a red light when Horcasitas pulled up behind him in a Volkswagen.—
Saleen Martin,
USA Today,
10 May 2025
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On the topic of disparities, Barone said over the last 10 years the numbers show when police use the traffic laws to focus on violations that are killing people like speeding, following too closely, running stop signs or red lights there is little disparity in the data.—
Sean Krofssik,
Hartford Courant,
9 May 2025
Noun
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Kayla gets back to their office to find that the official sign came in, and Jimmy put her name first.—
Jessica M. Goldstein,
Vulture,
23 May 2025
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After all, the year started with many signs indicating that 2025 could be a strong comeback year for initial public offerings.—
Lisya Bahar Manoah,
Forbes.com,
23 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Wake-up call.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wake-up%20call. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.
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