as in melancholy
given to or marked by long, quiet thinking
he was clearly in a musing mood, and did not feel like talking just then
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in meditation
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of musing
Sanjena Sathian, Vulture, 23 Sep. 2025
Trump has notably refrained from terminating Fed Chair Jerome Powell despite months of musings.
—Zach Schonfeld, The Hill, 22 Sep. 2025
Here and nowhere else, Holland treats Kafka’s oeuvre not as abstract fodder for pithy musing, but as texts which were published at a real point in history, that came from the mind of a person and not a divine conduit.
—Sam Bodrojan, IndieWire, 5 Sep. 2025
The debate over whether algorithms can ever be truly impartial has been simmering for years; what’s new is the urgency to move from philosophical musing to enforceable standards.
—Jason Snyder, Forbes.com, 8 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for musing
Adjective
Yet the essayistic musings in Sonia and Sunny read more like armchair postcolonialism than a major writer laying muscular claim to the novel as form.
—Sanjena Sathian, Vulture, 23 Sep. 2025
Trump has notably refrained from terminating Fed Chair Jerome Powell despite months of musings.
—Zach Schonfeld, The Hill, 22 Sep. 2025
Here and nowhere else, Holland treats Kafka’s oeuvre not as abstract fodder for pithy musing, but as texts which were published at a real point in history, that came from the mind of a person and not a divine conduit.
—Sam Bodrojan, IndieWire, 5 Sep. 2025
The debate over whether algorithms can ever be truly impartial has been simmering for years; what’s new is the urgency to move from philosophical musing to enforceable standards.
—Jason Snyder, Forbes.com, 8 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for musing
Recent Examples of Synonyms for musing
Adjective
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The manager who is so often the picture of calm had reddened eyes, a hint of melancholy in his voice.—
Cody Stavenhagen,
New York Times,
11 Oct. 2025
-
But about two-thirds of the way through, Roofman makes a quiet, almost imperceptible shift toward melancholy.—
Stephanie Zacharek,
Time,
10 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
This is an alarm clock and sound machine in one, with a huge bank of various sounds and meditations, as well as a customizable light show for winding down and waking up.—
Julia Harrison,
Architectural Digest,
8 Oct. 2025
-
This is a musical meditation infused with light.—
Daniel Kreps,
Rolling Stone,
8 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
In the book, Keaton reflected on modern standards of beauty, pondering the societal obsession with how things look.—
Emily Zemler,
Rolling Stone,
11 Oct. 2025
-
This includes watching the sketches Stiller & Meara performed on countless talk shows, critiquing their respective styles and pondering how much or little from their seemingly candid appearances and interviews was meant to be taken as truth and not performance.—
Daniel Fienberg,
HollywoodReporter,
6 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Score our favorite new finds, including a brilliantly fun garlic peeler, a thoughtful batter dispenser for pancakes, baked goods, and more, and a genius two-in-one flipper spatula.—
Alicia Geigel,
Southern Living,
8 Oct. 2025
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In the real world, this could look like strengthening a partnership through thoughtful gestures, receiving a windfall of support from family or finding joy in everyday rituals that suddenly feel sacred.—
Valerie Mesa,
PEOPLE,
8 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
This is coming after a period of rest, contemplation, and confusion about where your life is headed.—
Meghan Rose,
Glamour,
1 Oct. 2025
-
But as Giannis himself reminded everyone, this personal pattern of extreme offseason contemplation is nothing new.—
Sam Amick,
New York Times,
30 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
These include identifying specific stressors, breaking large problems into manageable steps, and taking concrete action rather than ruminating on difficulties.—
Ashley Lutz,
Fortune,
10 Oct. 2025
-
Black spent a lot of time ruminating on this before putting pen to paper.—
Clare Mulroy,
USA Today,
23 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
His reflective blue shades were perched atop a baseball cap, obscuring much of his face.—
Anna Kaufman,
USA Today,
6 Oct. 2025
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The pride in Plough’s expressions and the tone of his voice was reflective of the theme that every victory is to be savored in this rough-and-tumble sport, one in which no one weeps for the wounded.—
Joe Davidson,
Sacbee.com,
5 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Burnett was content to mine references from her own Depression-era youth; her famous maid character, the Charwoman, who became something of a show mascot, harked back to Chaplin’s Little Tramp, wearing a rumpled outfit and performing silent reveries.—
Rachel Syme,
New Yorker,
29 Sep. 2025
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Her words throw Max into a reverie, reliving his past in light of his parents’ lies.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
19 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Musing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/musing. Accessed 12 Oct. 2025.
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