1
as in perching
to come to rest after descending from the air
a flock of eight swans circled above, then alighted on the pond
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in descending
to come down from something (as a vehicle)
as she alighted from the train, she momentarily lost her footing
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of alighting
The second was to build what amounts to a nonflammable moat around a home to prevent embers from alighting on anything next to a house that could burn and ignite the structure.
—
Bloomberg, Mercury News, 12 Aug. 2025
Sound of Falling skips back and forth through time, alighting on moments of both horror and grace across a century in the lives of four women—adolescent and adult—inhabiting the same unsettled spaces.
—Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 5 Aug. 2025
Bloomberg, Mercury News, 12 Aug. 2025
Sound of Falling skips back and forth through time, alighting on moments of both horror and grace across a century in the lives of four women—adolescent and adult—inhabiting the same unsettled spaces.
—Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 5 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for alighting
Verb
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There have been many previous perching drone designs, but these typically have hooks or grasping claws to hold on to branches or powerlines, or use magnets or gecko-like feet to attach to vertical surfaces.—
David Hambling,
Forbes.com,
3 Sep. 2025
Verb
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In late December 1980, US Air Force personnel stationed at RAF Woodbridge saw strange lights descending into the forest.—
Atharva Gosavi,
Interesting Engineering,
3 Sep. 2025
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Another cold front is descending across the Great Lakes region later Wednesday.—
Anna Skinner,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Golden retrievers have long been one of America's most-popular breeds, regularly landing near the top spot in the American Kennel Club (AKC)'s annual list.—
Rachael O'Connor,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Sep. 2025
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This generally broad, collar-grabbing approach certainly makes for a direct and compelling polemic, landing in the midst of a crisis that lower-key campaigning so far hasn’t done much to solve.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
3 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The new cleat should be particularly appealing to racers – who need to snap back in as quickly as possible after dismounting – and to riders who are intimidated by the learning curve involved in using clipless pedals for the first time.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
28 Aug. 2025
Verb
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The other was a sailor who had fallen between two ships while disembarking one and boarding another.—
Curtis Bunn,
NBC news,
27 Aug. 2025
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The resort is also conveniently located for embarking or disembarking a cruise or ferry connection, with the port of Piraeus about 30 to 45 minutes away, depending on traffic.—
Paul Brady,
Travel + Leisure,
22 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Alighting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/alighting. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.
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