BELLYING Synonyms: 53 Similar and Opposite Words

bellying

verb

present participle of belly

as in protruding

to extend outward beyond a usual point the sails slowly bellied as the wind picked up

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in creeping

to move slowly with the body close to the ground recruits were forced to belly over the obstacle course under simulated enemy fire

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for bellying

Verb

As has the part where Reacher uses his left paw with two nails protruding from the palm as a makeshift Wolverine/Freddy Krueger stabbin’ hand.

— Chris Klimek, Vulture, 16 Sep. 2026
For the hunters, a massive grey orb with a ramp protruding from it is one clue.

— Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of protruding

Verb

Sometimes only the tips of the reeds and the seed heads were visible, poking above the murky water, and other times the reeds stood fully exposed, with a clear view of crabs clambering around their bases.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 28 Sep. 2026
Video posted to social media showed one car nearly submerged, with just its sunroof poking above the water, as people moved other vehicles farther from the rising tides.

— Leah Willingham, Los Angeles Times, 26 Sep. 2026

Definition of poking

Verb

The rooms Every single one of the 75 rooms is ocean-facing, with floor to ceiling sliding glass doors framing the view, and leading to private terraces perched above the mangroves.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 Oct. 2026
These twin trends—an aging Leninist system sliding toward one-man rule and mounting political inertia in the face of anything that might trigger social unrest—have eroded China’s governance capacity.

— Carl Minzner, Foreign Affairs, 5 Oct. 2026

Definition of sliding

Verb

Check for dented seams and bulging lids, which can point to food safety issues, recommends Morawetz.

— Embry Roberts, Martha Stewart, 19 Sep. 2026
Her bulging eyes, her piercing shrieks, her casual yet immaculately articulate cruelty all come together to form a cartoonish villain who’s also a commanding delight.

— Ben Travers, IndieWire, 18 Sep. 2026

Definition of bulging

Verb

Fighting along the roughly 780-mile front line snaking through northern, eastern and southern Ukraine has been virtually deadlocked in recent months.

— Susie Blann, Chicago Tribune, 4 Oct. 2026
Fighting along the roughly 1,250-kilometer (780-mile) front line snaking through northern, eastern and southern Ukraine has been virtually deadlocked in recent months.

— ABC News, ABC News, 3 Oct. 2026

Definition of snaking

Verb

Introduced crawling through the Trask family’s field, her black blood spattering their rich soil like a human pesticide, Cathy personifies the series’ potent blend of dread and beauty.

— Ben Travers, IndieWire, 1 Oct. 2026
But centering a nearly dead Cathy Ames (Florence Pugh) is Kazan’s entire intention with this project, and snagging us with the image of her bloody body crawling toward the Trasks’ farmhouse is a tip of the hand toward where East of Eden is going.

— Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 1 Oct. 2026

Definition of crawling

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Browse Nearby Words

bellyfuls

bellying

bellying up

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“Bellying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bellying. Accessed 8 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of bellying

verb

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