Sŷn'o-nŷm, n.

n.; pl. SYN'O-NŸMS. [Written also synonymæ.] [Fr. synonyme, Gr. συνώνυμον. See SYNONYMOUS.] One of two or more words in the same language which are the precise equivalents of each other, or which have very nearly the same signification, and therefore are liable to be confounded together.

All languages tend to clear themselves of synonyms as intellectual culture advances, the superfluous words being taken up and appropriated by new shades and combinations of thought evolved in the progress of society. De Quincey.

Few languages are richer than English in approximate synonyms and conjugates. G. P. Marsh.

His name has thus become, throughout all civilized countries, a synonym for probity and philanthropy. Macaulay.