Synonyms of careen

careen

verb

kə-ˈrēn 

1

as in to lurch

to make a series of unsteady side-to-side motions

the sled careened as it barreled down the hill

Synonyms & Similar Words

• lurch
• sway
• rock
• shake
• halt
• roll
• toss
• vibrate
• wobble
• jerk
• tumble
• vacillate
• stagger
• totter
• falter
• waver
• toddle
• seesaw
• weave
• waddle
• stumble
• pitch
• hobble
• oscillate
• undulate
• reel
• teeter
• flounder
• blunder
• jolt
• buck
• hitch
• dodder
• wag
• waggle

2

as in to stagger

to move forward while swaying from side to side

he careened unsteadily to the couch after hitting his head

Synonyms & Similar Words

• stagger
• lurch
• weave
• totter
• waddle
• teeter
• stomp
• roll
• stumble
• shuffle
• reel
• sway
• rock
• waver
• dodder
• wobble
• seesaw
• clomp
• barge
• clump
• lump
• shamble
• stamp
• flounder
• tramp
• galumph
• blunder
• tromp
• scuffle
• pound
• scuff
• lumber
• swag

3

as in to scurry

to proceed or move quickly

sounding its siren, an ambulance careened through the intersection

Synonyms & Similar Words

• scurry
• speed
• hurry
• rush
• race
• travel
• fly
• drive
• jump
• trot
• chase
• zip
• scoot
• run
• scuttle
• dart
• blow
• rip
• buzz
• hurl
• hurtle
• dash
• tear
• step
• zoom
• whirl
• blast
• hasten
• shoot
• ram
• career
• jog
• course
• jet
• motor
• rocket
• hie
• blaze
• bolt
• whisk
• rustle
• breeze
• hustle
• gallop
• bowl
• crack (on)
• hump
• barrel
• belt
• nip
• bundle
• highball
• pelt
• flit
• beat it
• make tracks
• hare
• scamper
• bustle
• cannonball
• bomb
• get a move on
• hotfoot (it)
• accelerate
• step on it
• shake a leg
• sprint
• overtake
• stampede
• whiz
• streak
• outstrip
• quicken
• outrun
• scud
• beetle
• outpace
• step out
• scuffle
• catch up
• fast-forward
• arrow
• beeline

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• creep
• crawl
• linger
• drag
• poke
• hang (around or out)
• loiter
• dawdle
• tarry
• poke
• lag
• saunter
• stroll
• amble
• shuffle
• decelerate
• plod
• slow (down or up)
• lumber
• dally
• dillydally

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of careen

But alas, eventually all involved have to get down to business and actually contend with the plot beats of Hoover’s story, which is when the movie careens off a cliff, plummeting past so-bad-it’s-good and crashing on the rocks of agonizingly dumb. — Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 30 Sep. 2026

Rules like this, almost certainly, will come into play as AI leaders Anthropic and OpenAI careen toward trillion-dollar-plus IPOs. — Allie Garfinkle, Fortune, 28 Sep. 2026

And at twilight, New Orleans bandleader and composer Jon Batiste delivered a contagious tour-de-force of joy and struggle, careening from ragtime classics to contemporary numbers. — Charisma Madarang, Rolling Stone, 27 Sep. 2026

In moments, the two cars are careening along an autocross course amidst a backdrop of billowing smoke—a cacophony of screaming engines and tires accompanies as soundtrack to the precise automotive choreography. — Viju Mathew, Robb Report, 16 Sep. 2026