birling

present participle of birl, chiefly Scottish
as in drinking
to take part in drunken revelry spent a good part of his time in Edinburgh birling into the wee small hours of the night

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for birling
Verb
  • The officer, Michael Zerfas, testified that Oates had not been drinking, using drugs or on his cellphone.
    — Sharon Bernstein, Sacbee.com, 24 Sep. 2026
  • The backstory For most of my life, the Old Dutch Inn has been just a faint memory of kicking my legs from a bar stool, drinking a Shirley Temple next to my late grandmother, who would likely have been nursing a gin and tonic.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Sep. 2026
Verb
  • There are certainly fans and pundits who feel that anything short of a title shouldn’t be celebrated in sports, and some who think carousing over anything less is especially beneath the Yankees, who have won 27 World Series but zero since 2009.
    — Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 15 Sep. 2026
  • Three sitting rooms are complemented by a further three members’ social spaces for carousing in, concealed behind a subtle screen (here, DJs including Goldierocks make appearances, and mobile snaps are banned; staff politely place a sticker over mobile camera lenses).
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 18 May 2026
Verb
  • The video sweeps around a reveling fiefdom, showing everyone from peasants to dukes partying and getting it on.
    — Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 18 Sep. 2026
  • Right in the middle of cheering, reveling masses was MARTA — a connective system of veins that efficiently moved the happy throngs.
    — Doug Turnbull, AJC.com, 2 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • The inviting throw is ideal for curling up under while binging Halloween movies or hunkering down on football Sundays, and adds a fun fall feel to your space that can easily transition into winter decorating.
    — Maggie Horton, PEOPLE, 18 Sep. 2026
  • The shows also serve to eat up time during dayside hours when consumers may not be interested in binging a drama series or original movie.
    — Alex Weprin, HollywoodReporter, 1 Sep. 2026
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.

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Cite this Entry

“Birling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/birling. Accessed 27 Sep. 2026.

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