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boomeranging

verb

present participle of boomerang
as in collapsing
to have the reverse of the desired or expected effect the well-meaning gesture boomeranged, since he ended up being offended by it

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of boomeranging The idea of Miami boomeranging from 7-10 to make the playoffs next year and maybe even end that playoff-victory drought is not be crazy. — Greg Cote january 26, Miami Herald, 26 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for boomeranging
  1. collapsing
  2. flopping
  3. backfiring
Verb
  • Portland took an early lead, but the Pride showed fight and kept it close before collapsing in the last 20 minutes.
    — Kyle Foley, The Orlando Sentinel, 19 Sep. 2026
  • This halts the nuclear fusion process — which involves converting that hydrogen to helium — leading to the stars collapsing and shedding their outer layers to become a white dwarf with around the mass of the sun crammed into the width of Earth.
    — Robert Lea, Space.com, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of collapsing
Verb
  • The fish looks straight at me, flopping sluggishly from side to side.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 17 Sep. 2026
  • Nobody likes to see their sunflowers flopping over—and according to Nancy Awot-Traut, a horticulture specialist at Burpee, there can be several reasons why this happens.
    — Lauren Wellbank, Martha Stewart, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of flopping
Verb
  • The bigoted rhetoric against Muslim American politicians is backfiring, news and culture critic Lorraine Ali writes.
    — Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times, 4 Sep. 2026
  • Yet, on so many fronts, Trump’s assertion of that power appears to be backfiring.
    — Ishaan Tharoor, New Yorker, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of backfiring

Browse Nearby Words

boomeranged
boomeranging
boomerangs
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Cite this Entry

“Boomeranging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/boomeranging. Accessed 22 Sep. 2026.

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