1
as in fissures
an irregular usually narrow break in a surface created by pressure
a small rift opened in the earth's crust
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in gaps
an open space in a barrier (as a wall or hedge)
it was possible to peek through the rift in the fence and see the ball game
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of rifts
Erin Hill, PEOPLE, 8 Oct. 2025
Not just from the outside in but from our inside rifts.
—Romina Ruiz-Goiriena, USA Today, 4 Oct. 2025
Advertisement While trying to bridge internal party rifts, Takaichi will need to build a majority coalition and convince voters that changing leaders really matters.
—Jeff Kingston, Time, 4 Oct. 2025
Perhaps this is leading to relationship difficulties and highlighting potential rifts in other friendships?
—Miriam Kirmayer, SELF, 1 Oct. 2025
The primary setting is a classroom at a progressive private school in Berkeley, unfolding almost entirely in a series of board meetings where disagreements over how to handle a mumps outbreak expose deep and eventually quite angry rifts among the parents, on and off the board.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 24 Sep. 2025
This will only harm students’ ability to think critically and create rifts between them.
—The Editorial Board, Oc Register, 21 Sep. 2025
Rather than refrain from taking sides when great powers disagree, the country has sought to capitalize on opportunities presented by geopolitical rifts to advance its principles.
—Michelle Gavin, Foreign Affairs, 17 Sep. 2025
But intraparty rifts could complicate GOP leadership’s math if the lower chamber moves forward with plans to vote on the evolving legislation, which Republican critics note would keep funding mostly at levels hashed out under the Biden administration.
—Aris Folley, The Hill, 16 Sep. 2025
Verb
The spot was a chance to reframe the Prince of Wales' public image after years of headlines surrounding family rifts and the fallout from the departure of his brother, Prince Harry, and sister-in-law, Meghan Markle, from the royal fold in 2020.
—Erin Hill, PEOPLE, 8 Oct. 2025
Not just from the outside in but from our inside rifts.
—Romina Ruiz-Goiriena, USA Today, 4 Oct. 2025
Advertisement While trying to bridge internal party rifts, Takaichi will need to build a majority coalition and convince voters that changing leaders really matters.
—Jeff Kingston, Time, 4 Oct. 2025
Perhaps this is leading to relationship difficulties and highlighting potential rifts in other friendships?
—Miriam Kirmayer, SELF, 1 Oct. 2025
The primary setting is a classroom at a progressive private school in Berkeley, unfolding almost entirely in a series of board meetings where disagreements over how to handle a mumps outbreak expose deep and eventually quite angry rifts among the parents, on and off the board.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 24 Sep. 2025
This will only harm students’ ability to think critically and create rifts between them.
—The Editorial Board, Oc Register, 21 Sep. 2025
Rather than refrain from taking sides when great powers disagree, the country has sought to capitalize on opportunities presented by geopolitical rifts to advance its principles.
—Michelle Gavin, Foreign Affairs, 17 Sep. 2025
But intraparty rifts could complicate GOP leadership’s math if the lower chamber moves forward with plans to vote on the evolving legislation, which Republican critics note would keep funding mostly at levels hashed out under the Biden administration.
—Aris Folley, The Hill, 16 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rifts
Noun
-
This magma chamber beneath the lake charges the maar with millions of tons of carbon dioxide (CO2), which seeps up through fissures in the lake floor.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
22 Oct. 2025
-
Crews discovered fissures in the bedrock that required repair and struggled to find grips strong enough to hold cars on the steep grade.—
Michael Wells,
Kansas City Star,
22 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Funding cliff The children wasting away, day by day, don’t have time to wait for funding gaps to be filled.—
Rebecca Wright,
CNN Money,
25 Oct. 2025
-
Jupiter was shaping Earth's fate before our planet even existed, carving gaps in the early solar system that kept its building blocks from plunging into the sun, a new study finds.—
Sharmila Kuthunur,
Space.com,
24 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Surviving Mormonism fractures the church’s seemingly perfect veneer to expose the secrets that have been kept behind closed doors.—
Armando Tinoco,
Deadline,
21 Oct. 2025
-
While a tiny fraction of the quake’s energy (less than 1%) fractures rocks, up to 80% of it is transformed into heat.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
16 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The surrounding mountains are just pink rock piles sprouting cacti from their crevices.—
Rowan Jacobsen,
Harpers Magazine,
24 Oct. 2025
-
Most vacuums are fit for the job with an attachment suited for getting into small crevices.—
Krystal Nurse,
USA Today,
22 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Once written, the script’s fantastic promise distracted its readers from the fatal holes in its plot.—
Elizabeth D. Samet,
Foreign Affairs,
29 Oct. 2025
-
Plus, the storage area has ventilation holes to keep items from becoming musty.—
Rachel Trujillo,
PEOPLE,
28 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
First released in 2020 on South Africa’s M-Net, a division of MultiChoice, and now a Canal Plus company, the thriller about how a family tears itself apart in a succession battle built a huge fandom in South Africa and fame abroad.—
John Hopewell,
Variety,
13 Oct. 2025
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The Achilles tears that the Boston Celtics' Jayson Tatum and Tyrese Haliburton of the Indiana Pacers suffered during the 2025 playoffs have made the race for the conference wide open this coming season.—
Robert Marvi,
MSNBC Newsweek,
20 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Heupel spreads out his receivers in an attempt to spread out the defense, then gashes them with the run.—
Seth Emerson,
New York Times,
10 Sep. 2025
-
The pictures show scars and gashes around the dog's snout.—
Liz O'Connell,
MSNBC Newsweek,
26 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
The seventh-gen Mantra M7 still rips, but it’s finally figured out how to have a little fun, too.—
Marina Knight,
Outside,
17 Oct. 2025
-
Continue reading … CRIME MAGNET – Washington Post rips Democratic Socialist's costly bus proposal for New Yorkers.—
,
FOXNews.com,
13 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Rifts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rifts. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
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