bugging out

verb

present participle of bug out
1
as in retreating
to hasten away from something dangerous or frightening the ground soldiers bugged out just before the start of the aerial bombing

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in departing
to leave a place often for another the strange visitor bugged out without so much as saying a word

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 bugging out There’s a wonderful small moment midway through the season where Reilly’s lightly bugging out in his dingy apartment, shaking out his limbs at sharp, insectile angles to get comfortable. — Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 26 May 2026 Her baby's father answered the door with his eyes bugging out, and Frierson barged in to find two other guys, needles, spoons and powder on the table. — Brad Schmitt, The Tennessean, 21 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bugging out
  1. retreating
  2. departing
  3. fleeing
  4. exiting
  5. flying
  6. moving
  7. bolting
  8. running along
Verb
  • Stepping into the public sphere rather than retreating became both a survival strategy and a refuge—an assertion of political and artistic self-determination.
    — Elisa R. Linn, Artforum, 1 Sep. 2026
  • The player reported that the man had opened a knife and moved toward him before retreating into his room.
    — Peter Chawaga, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of retreating
Verb
  • Sima Sistani, who led WeightWatchers for close to three years before departing in 2024, is launching Liberation of Flowers, inspired by her Persian roots.
    — Kathryn Hopkins, Footwear News, 27 Aug. 2026
  • White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt held what was expected to be her final gaggle outside the West Wing on Thursday, her last day on the job before departing the role.
    — Natalie Allison, Washington Post, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of departing
Verb
  • Survivors find shelter in Kathmandu Some flood survivors are fleeing the devastation to seek shelter in Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu.
    — Shristi Kafle, Los Angeles Times, 2 Sep. 2026
  • In past months, he has been charged with second-degree kidnapping, fleeing elude police, firearm charges and assault charges.
    — Charlotte Observer, Charlotte Observer, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of fleeing
Verb
  • Shortly after exiting, Hawley complained of feeling lightheaded before slumping to the ground and going unconscious.
    — Blake Ellis, CNN Money, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Brazell was shot shortly after exiting an AC Transit bus near Lakeshore Avenue and Mandana Boulevard.
    — Nate Gartrell, Mercury News, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of exiting
Verb
  • Grichuk put a good swing on a slider while flying out to left field.
    — LaMond Pope, Chicago Tribune, 1 Sep. 2026
  • It was later revealed that the plane had been overloaded by 700 pounds and the pilot, who had cocaine and alcohol in his system, was not authorized to be flying, according to CBS.
    — Liza Esquibias, USA Today, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of flying
Verb
  • Instead of simply moving the body without the patient’s involvement, HAL responds to the person’s own intention to move.
    — Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 30 Aug. 2026
  • Others are already moving confidently through modern cities, studying, working and shaping lives increasingly separate from traditional expectations.
    — PhotoVogue, Vogue, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of moving
Verb
  • Involves engineering hurdles Building solar farms on open water involves far more engineering hurdles than bolting panels onto dry land.
    — Aman Tripathi, Interesting Engineering, 21 Aug. 2026
  • Above all, embed accuracy into explainability rather than bolting it on afterward.
    — Sriram Bhargav Madhav, Forbes.com, 17 Aug. 2026
Definition of bolting
Verb
  • Argentina is producing oil and gas like never before, helping make crude the country’s leading export for the first time, though worries persist that the economy is running along two tracks.
    — Jeronimo Gonzalez, semafor.com, 25 Aug. 2026
  • Video captured by e-biker Jamaal Harrison shows the small pig running along Hayworth Avenue near West Hollywood as Harrison follows on his bike.
    — USA TODAY, USA Today, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of running along

Browse Nearby Words

bugging off
bugging out
buggy
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Cite this Entry

“Bugging out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bugging%20out. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

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Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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