commanding

adjective

com·​mand·​ing kə-ˈman-diŋ How to pronounce commanding (audio)
1
: drawing attention or priority
a commanding presence
2
: difficult to overcome
a commanding lead
commandingly adverb

Examples of commanding in a Sentence

He has a very commanding voice. She holds a commanding lead in the polls. Our team was in a commanding position as the game neared its end. The castle is in a commanding position at the top of the hill. The hill provides a commanding view of the surrounding countryside.
Recent Examples on the Web Sheppard sent Summers a congratulatory message a day after election-night results showed Summers with a commanding lead. Alex Riggins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 12 Mar. 2024 The crowd broke into cheers as the first results showed him with a commanding lead over his opponent. David Zahniser, Los Angeles Times, 6 Mar. 2024 Cohen faced a tough reelection battle as Chu sought to take back his old seat, but the current District 4 councilmember held a commanding lead early Tuesday evening. Grace Hase, The Mercury News, 5 Mar. 2024 And Trump holds a commanding lead in North Carolina, according to polling data. Kevin Keister, Charlotte Observer, 5 Mar. 2024 Donald Trump holds a commanding lead over Nikki Haley in Republicans' preferences and in delegates going into the Super Tuesday contests. Fred Backus, CBS News, 5 Mar. 2024 Sharif’s term is likely to be overshadowed by lingering allegations of electoral fraud from Khan’s Movement for Justice party, or Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), which appeared to have a commanding lead in unofficial polls released immediately after voting stations closed on Feb. 8. Rick Noack, Washington Post, 3 Mar. 2024 Claudia Sheinbaum, a physicist and protégée of the current president, holds a commanding lead of about 30 percentage points in the polls over the opposition’s Xóchitl Gálvez, a tech entrepreneur, as campaigning officially starts on Friday. Emiliano Rodríguez Mega, New York Times, 1 Mar. 2024 Jordan Mendoza 49ers unable to take advantage of Patrick Mahomes INT San Francisco missed a gigantic opportunity to take a commanding lead after the 49ers intercepted Patrick Mahomes. Steve Gardner, USA TODAY, 11 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'commanding.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1591, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of commanding was in 1591

Dictionary Entries Near commanding

Cite this Entry

“Commanding.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/commanding. Accessed 29 Mar. 2024.

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