rapture 1 of 2

rapture

2 of 2

verb

Synonym Chooser

How is the word rapture distinct from other similar nouns?

The words ecstasy and transport are common synonyms of rapture. While all three words mean "intense exaltation of mind and feelings," rapture usually implies intense bliss or beatitude.

in speechless rapture

How do ecstasy and rapture relate to one another?

Ecstasy and rapture both suggest a state of trance or near immobility produced by an overpowering emotion; ecstasy may apply to any strong emotion (such as joy, fear, rage, adoration).

religious ecstasy

When might transport be a better fit than rapture?

In some situations, the words transport and rapture are roughly equivalent. However, transport applies to any powerful emotion that lifts one out of oneself and usually provokes vehement expression or frenzied action.

in a transport of rage

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 rapture
Noun
Her lyric vocal writing contends with harsh reality, but her style is never far from profound rapture. Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times, 28 Feb. 2025 Such critical rapture would bring her to the Eighth Academy Awards as a nominee for Best Actress alongside Bette Davis and Katharine Hepburn. Mayukh Sen, The Atlantic, 1 Mar. 2025
Verb
Dispensationalism has an offensive reputation among many Jews because the End Times prophecy outlines an event in which Jews suffer mass slaughter while Christian believers are spared because God raptured them. Liam Adams, The Tennessean, 22 Nov. 2024 Yet Mendes mostly sees a cheap, useful instrument in Deakins—a shortcut to rapture. A.a. Dowd, Chron, 8 Dec. 2022 See All Example Sentences for rapture
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rapture
Noun
  • In one raid carried out last week at a residential address, Oakman said, KCK police officers seized nearly 1,500 grams of marijuana and cocaine, along with 48 ecstasy and methamphetamine pills, 15 assault rifles and about $5,230 in cash.
    Ilana Arougheti, Kansas City Star, 8 Apr. 2025
  • That’s why there have countless films and even a couple of series constructed around the agony and the ecstasy of moviemaking.
    Randy Myers, Mercury News, 27 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • Henry Fonda belonged to a bygone Hollywood era of stories and role models geared to delighting moviegoers’ curiosity.
    Armond White, National Review, 4 Apr. 2025
  • Ahead, discover 20 options designed to delight every type of bride (and to come in handy when the occasion calls for it).
    Sarah Zendejas, Vogue, 31 Mar. 2025
Noun
  • Dustin May closed his eyes, took a breath and held his head suspended toward the heavens.
    Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 2 Apr. 2025
  • Then, Nathan Lee Graham was just like a gift from the heavens.
    Jeff Conway, Forbes.com, 27 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • The song entranced a crowd of eclipse chasers while the birds flocked and some passing dogs barked.
    Jamie Carter, Space.com, 31 Mar. 2025
  • That so much night could exist within a city, flooding the side-streets and massing in secluded courtyards, entranced me.
    Hazlitt, Hazlitt, 12 Mar. 2025
Noun
  • But one that comes from excitement and joy and chasing each other around.
    Danielle Pergament, SELF, 10 Apr. 2025
  • Smith and Hanson both found joy and beauty in the ‘wrong side’ of a tapestry, with its wild mix of colours and yarns, and this led to a collection that reimagines tapestries as wearable pieces of art.
    Lee Sharrock, Forbes.com, 9 Apr. 2025
Verb
  • Natural gas has historically been harder to transport and a lower margin good.
    Steven Dudash, Forbes.com, 1 Apr. 2025
  • Each scent captures a distinct encounter, using an olfactory experience to transport the wearer to a specific moment in time.
    Danielle James, Vogue, 1 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • To no longer be complicit in surrendering her life to the sport at the expense of her happiness.
    Marcus Thompson II, New York Times, 27 Mar. 2025
  • So that was a very conscious call, along with the choice of basing it in a particular weather, which is monsoon, because the characters don’t really have any happiness or sunshine in their life.
    Proma Khosla, IndieWire, 27 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • When the truck tipped over, the workers were carried away by surging water from the nearby Nolichucky River.
    Charna Flam, People.com, 5 Apr. 2025
  • Buck immediately said yes, which is nice in some ways, but since he is set to make $75 million over five years, no one should get too carried away by the gesture.
    Andrew Marchand, New York Times, 28 Mar. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Rapture.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rapture. Accessed 14 Apr. 2025.

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