bounding 1 of 3

adjective

as in encircling

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Dissimilar Words

bounding

2 of 3

verb (1)

present participle of bound
1
as in defining
to mark the limits of the country is bounded by water on two sides

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2
as in bordering
to serve as a border for being bounded on all sides by the Alps has helped Switzerland maintain its neutrality

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bounding

3 of 3

verb (2)

present participle of bound
1
as in hopping
to move with a light springing step the child giggled and bounded off to play with her friends

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in leaping
to propel oneself upward or forward into the air a rabbit bounded down the garden path

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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 bounding
Verb
The sound of a teenager bounding down the stairs of our home. — John Biemer, Chicago Tribune, 28 Aug. 2026 For now, though, the puppy who once came bounding into CBS Texas is growing up right before our eyes. — Nelly Carreño, CBS News, 21 Aug. 2026 East Portal Park was busy on Monday morning, with children bounding through the playground and the soft clunking of bocce balls echoing from the nearby courts. — Anne Ewbank, Sacbee.com, 10 Aug. 2026 Perhaps most importantly, the brothers had an indisputable chemistry, both in the studio and bounding around racks of equipment on stage. — Will Pritchard, Pitchfork, 8 Aug. 2026 At 5-foot-9, Fery possesses a skill set perfectly suited for low-bounding grass. — Douglas Robson, Los Angeles Times, 9 July 2026 But Adams is bounding around the rooftop beaming, teeth porcelain-white, face slathered in makeup, hair firmly coiffed. — Aidan McLaughlin, Vanity Fair, 18 June 2026 There is no shortage of footage of Shelton from his early career, bounding after balls with the fury of a linebacker chasing down a quarterback and then sliding through them — too far through them. — Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 25 May 2026 An antelope on a ridge teasingly stares before bounding off up the rocky hill. — Julia Sayers Gokhale, Midwest Living, 17 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bounding
  1. embracing
  2. defining
  3. bordering
  4. hopping
  5. leaping
  6. surrounding
  7. bouncing
  8. jumping
Adjective
  • The saints’ days are celebrated, the great days of history are celebrated, and they’re celebrated with this sort of enormous exuberance and deep investment that is somehow very, very touching, very embracing, and very inclusive.
    — Terry Ward, AFAR Media, 2 Sep. 2025
Definition of embracing
Verb
  • Following the unification of Italy in the 19th century, these traditions increasingly came to be understood collectively as Italian cuisine, although regional differences remain a defining feature of the country’s cuisine.
    — Laura Payne, Encyclopedia Britannica, 9 Sep. 2026
  • But the island’s most recent defining event was the devastation wrought by 2017’s Hurricane Irma.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 9 Sep. 2026
Definition of defining
Verb
  • Days of fighting near the Red Sea coast have left more than 300 people dead and displaced hundreds of families as the Houthis try to capture land bordering the Bab al-Mandab Strait.
    — September 7, CBS News, 7 Sep. 2026
  • Castro was initially arrested in May in the Minnesota case, and he was held in custody in Brownsville, Texas, a city bordering Mexico, while Minnesota officials sought his extradition.
    — Alanna Durkin Richer, Los Angeles Times, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of bordering
Verb
  • And there’s perhaps no better way to experience it than hopping on the rails for a ride through Colorado with the Broadmoor Manitou and Pikes Peak Cog Railway.
    — Stacey Leasca, Travel + Leisure, 5 Sep. 2026
  • And if the couple decides to live a nomadic life, hopping from mansion to mansion, Farlow said thousands of years of Samoyed breeding should come in handy.
    — David Mack, CNN Money, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of hopping
Verb
  • Hunt could follow Quinyon Mitchell and Cooper DeJean by leaping to stardom.
    — Zach Berman, New York Times, 7 Sep. 2026
  • The debris Fires burned inside the Pentagon for nearly three days, leaping along the roof.
    — Karissa Waddick, USA Today, 6 Sep. 2026
Definition of leaping
Adjective
  • Some critics of the budget cuts argue that the bar may be high but merited, given what the museum has to offer Brussels in terms of art, direct and indirect employment, and revitalizing the surrounding, low-income neighborhood.
    — Devorah Lauter, ARTnews.com, 10 Sep. 2026
  • Connecticut farmers have been watching how surrounding states have handled the bright red flying bug and adjusted their farms accordingly.
    — Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 7 Sep. 2026
Definition of surrounding
Verb
  • And then bouncing to another team again, which has been one of the hard parts for me.
    — Eric Stephens, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026
  • Pick them up and show them around the clinic, bouncing them on her hip.
    — Durrie Bouscaren, NPR, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of bouncing
Verb
  • Pitts saw a woman and a man standing at a window of one of the towers holding hands, and then jumping.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 10 Sep. 2026
  • With the Yankees trailing the Tampa Bay Rays in a tight AL East race, Judge insisted on jumping straight back into big-league action.
    — Alejandro Avila OutKick, FOXNews.com, 9 Sep. 2026
Definition of jumping

Browse Nearby Words

bounders
bounding
boundless
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Cite this Entry

“Bounding.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bounding. Accessed 12 Sep. 2026.

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