fells

verb

present tense third-person singular of fell
1
as in downs
to strike (someone) so forcefully as to cause a fall a champion boxer who was shockingly felled in the first round

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in mows
to bring down by cutting the settlers began the daunting task of felling the mighty trees that blanketed the island

Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in destroys
to deprive of life the quest for a cure for malaria, the disease that felled so many during the digging of the Panama Canal

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for fells
  1. downs
  2. mows
  3. destroys
  4. drops
  5. kills
  6. hits
  7. slays
Verb
  • Both teams had ups and downs (mostly downs for the Browns) but Ohio State was always a much better, and much more fun atmosphere.
    — Zach Dean OutKick, FOXNews.com, 24 Sep. 2026
  • Nearly everyone rides a stationary bike — high tension, low speed — after a match and quickly downs a protein recovery drink.
    — Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 6 Sep. 2026
Definition of downs
Verb
  • The narrative begins with a prologue in which a man mows grass in a cemetery dotted with twenty-four unmarked graves.
    — Keziah Weir, Vanity Fair, 13 Aug. 2026
  • When my neighbor mows his lawn, mine goes from looking fine to a little shaggy by that afternoon.
    — byDoug Ashburn, Encyclopedia Britannica, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of mows
Verb
  • Jains typically do not eat root vegetables because harvesting them destroys the whole plant and harms life-forms around it.
    — Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Sep. 2026
  • How IonQ cracked error correction Since making measurements of a qubit destroys its quantum state, researchers can only gather information about their syndromes to know if the qubit has accumulated an error or not.
    — Ameya Paleja, Interesting Engineering, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of destroys
Verb
  • The percentage of those in the trades 5 years after completing an apprenticeship or postsecondary education drops to 29% and 34% respectively.
    — Itzel Franco, CNBC, 2 Oct. 2026
  • When the puck drops, be ready with Betr and their offer of $200 in bonus bets for tonight’s game with promo code FOXNEWS.
    — OutKick, FOXNews.com, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of drops
Verb
  • Moments later, MacKinney storms in, kills one of Colum’s guards, and orders his men to round up the castle’s women and sequester them in the chapel.
    — Max Gao, HollywoodReporter, 5 Oct. 2026
  • Other competitors will likely put up barriers, which kills the fun of having AI at your beck and call.
    — The Week US, TheWeek, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of kills
Verb
  • And the next second, the second bomb hits right in front of the left of the car.
    — David Folkenflik, NPR, 4 Oct. 2026
  • Brightline only hits its top speed during a 38-mile stretch near Orlando.
    — Chris Isidore, CNN Money, 4 Oct. 2026
Definition of hits
Verb
  • With career-defining performances from Jodie Foster and Sir Anthony Hopkins, this movie still absolutely slays 35 years after it was released.
    — Brian Tallerico, Vulture, 19 Sep. 2026
  • When his friend Richard (Leo Suter) slays Beatrice’s husband as well, the two come up with a scheme to marry the sisters and take over their property.
    — Jourdain Searles, HollywoodReporter, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of slays
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.

Browse Nearby Words

fellow travelers
fells
fell short
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Fells.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fells. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

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

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

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

The Words of the Week - Oct. 9

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

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
a cup of tea and a golf ball on tee side by side
Quiz: Sounds Like... Choose the word that sounds like it fits the clue...
See All