RILED Synonyms: 264 Similar and Opposite Words

riled 1 of 2

adjective

as in angry

feeling or showing anger the woman was obviously riled, as she kept throwing things

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

riled

2 of 2

verb

past tense of rile

as in annoyed

to disturb the peace of mind of (someone) especially by repeated disagreeable acts one sure way to rile me is to keep yelling for me

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in infuriated

to make angry her husband isn't easily riled, but once he is, he stays that way for days

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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 riled

Adjective

In any case, the epilogue sticks the landing and allows audiences to leave the theater feeling riled up rather than hopeless. — Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 9 Sep. 2026 The Aaron Rodgers segment on ESPN got folks on both sides of the Anthony Fauci debate quite riled up on Monday. — Armando Salguero Outkick, FOXNews.com, 4 Aug. 2026 Jacobs, at least in the movie, never gets riled or angry or stressed. — Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 21 Mar. 2026 The more people tell them to pipe down, the more riled up Kizzi and Joe get. — Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 13 Jan. 2026 They’re aided by a small team of assistants who double as dogsitters when Siwa’s poodle Clyde gets too riled up in the dance studio — he’s been known to nip the ankles of men. — Scottie Andrew, CNN Money, 25 Oct. 2025

Verb

Sydney Sweeney has riled up some leading female athletes with her risqué ad campaign for Novig, the sports betting platform. — Rosemary Feitelberg, Footwear News, 14 Sep. 2026 Township officials accused me of a power grab and riled up the local township boards, which came out en masse. — Chicago Tribune, 6 Aug. 2026 And while enough baseball (and IL time) has happened since then to dim Mayer’s star considerably, there’s enough promise left in him to get Law riled up about the trade. — Grant Brisbee, New York Times, 4 Aug. 2026 Offseason inaction on the pitching side already riled folks up, though … and methinks alleviating that angst will require something more adventurous. — Tyler Estep, AJC.com, 29 July 2026 This riled up the Kremlin, which works to create a perception of total support for Putin among the voting public. — Yuliya Talmazan, NBC news, 17 July 2026 Its reporting angered not only other Arab leaders, sometimes to the point of diplomatic rupture, but also riled Washington. — Jon Gambrell, Los Angeles Times, 12 July 2026 Water use, electricity costs and more have riled up large portions of the electorate. — Brian Sullivan, CNBC, 24 June 2026 That’s the only explicable reason for Australians to be riled up by comments from a guy most American fans can’t pick out of a lineup, whose most productive season came for a club literally named the Rough Riders. — Ian Nicholas Quillen, Forbes.com, 18 June 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for riled

Adjective

To argue that calling them immigrants is technically wrong is like getting angry at people who don’t pronounce Los Feliz the Spanish way.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2026
Sheriff Rick Ramsay said Monday that the father later told detectives that Lopez was angry that prosecutors didn’t offer him any plea deals, so his son planned to leave the country rather than face conviction.

— David Goodhue, Miami Herald, 6 Oct. 2026

Definition of angry

Verb

Coach Rhett Lashlee was already annoyed with special teams coming into the game, and that was before the Mustangs botched two PAT attempts.

— ABC News, ABC News, 3 Oct. 2026
Those are the fans who have a right to be annoyed about their team having won as many World Series in the last quarter-century as the White Sox.

— Mike Lupica, New York Daily News, 1 Oct. 2026

Definition of annoyed

Verb

Sydney Sweeney is no stranger to starring in a controversial ad — and her latest effort has infuriated female athletes, including Olympians.

— Jake Kanter, Deadline, 14 Sep. 2026
But Marcia was beginning to sound like Marcia on the page, Marcia in those essays that both excited and infuriated her readers.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 Sep. 2026

Definition of infuriated

Adjective

And not just any velociraptor, but the enraged dinosaur that pushed franchise champion Rachel Reilly into a volcano, thereby burning the reality TV icon to a crisp in a sea of lava.

— Dalton Ross, Entertainment Weekly, 1 Oct. 2026
Imagine the ripe smell of swamp-wet dogs, the acrid stench of overheated, enraged bear, the slippery warm blood of pack members already lost; the simply insufferable noise and confusion in that dank little hole.

— Paul Schullery, Outdoor Life, 13 Aug. 2026

Definition of enraged

Verb

And he cannot be bothered with mentioning any of them even when discussing Watson's history.

— Armando Salguero OutKick, FOXNews.com, 2 Oct. 2026
Thomas has been estranged from the organization for months over a social media faux pas that bothered him and a lawsuit over sales of his jersey.

— Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 1 Oct. 2026

Definition of bothered

Adjective

After a concertgoer died in the audience at a Carson music festival on Saturday, an artist is outraged the show continued while the deceased was still on-site.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2026
Its students arrive morally outraged, a priori puritans, while its professors are enervated and dissatisfied.

— Zain Khalid, Vulture, 1 Oct. 2026

Definition of outraged

Verb

The episode confused and irritated the Red Sox, and following Saturday’s win starting pitcher Sonny Gray acknowledged that Alexander’s antics had provided the club with extra motivation.

— Mac Cerullo, Boston Herald, 6 Sep. 2026
The comments irritated Ilicali, who took to social media in response.

— Philip Buckingham, New York Times, 23 Aug. 2026

Definition of irritated

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

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Synonyms of riled

adjective

verb

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