CIRCLING Synonyms: 72 Similar and Opposite Words

circling 1 of 2

adjective

as in swirling

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

circling

2 of 2

verb

present participle of circle

as in surrounding

to form a circle around everyone circled the lectern and waited their turn to read from the Bible

Synonyms & Similar Words

as in orbiting

to travel completely around with a look of extreme frustration, the commander circled the new recruit

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 circling

Verb

The evening of the shoot, there was frequent hum of tourist helicopters circling the island, and a few party boats blasting music, which threatened to put a damper on the plans. — Alex Weprin, HollywoodReporter, 3 July 2026 Minutes later the pike was just under the surface, circling close to the boat. — Jack G. Mell, Outdoor Life, 2 July 2026 Iceland’s Ring Road is a natural fit for an EV road trip, circling the island for about 820 miles past waterfalls, black sand beaches, glacier lagoons, lava fields, fjords and fishing towns. — Emese MacZko, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026 Around the time that the drone appeared, two aircraft began following the Fiorella, descending toward it, climbing away, and circling. — Will Freeman, New Yorker, 30 June 2026 Mubi is among the distributors still circling the film starring Andrew Garfield as Altman, which Amazon exited several months after striking a significant partnership with Open AI. — Pat Saperstein, Variety, 26 June 2026 Screams could be heard in the background of many videos circling social media, and posts showed some fans trying to climb through air vents to gain entry. — ABC News, 26 June 2026 Other wearable tech companies have been circling this space. — Lily Mae Lazarus, Fortune, 17 June 2026 Soon the sky would grow thick with circling helicopters and would stay that way for more than a week, the cutting of their rotor blades ominous and heartbreaking. — Karen Valby, Vanity Fair, 16 June 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for circling

Adjective

The cornerstone of Boards classics is a blurring retrofuturism achieved via swirling and clashing sample, synth, and guitar textures.

— Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 8 July 2026
Is there a way for a non-Jew to see past the swirling, anti-Jewish conspiracy theories and debates about Israel and actually learn something from Judaism that could improve their lives?

— John Blake, CNN Money, 5 July 2026

Definition of swirling

Verb

The council would then examine the details surrounding the change before passing an ordinance expanding those voting rights.

— Melissa Gomez, Los Angeles Times, 4 July 2026
The design is open and clean, with a deliberate choice to draw the surrounding scenery deep into the interior of the home.

— Bridget Borgobello July 03, New Atlas, 4 July 2026

Definition of surrounding

Verb

The moment was captured 263 miles (423 kilometers) above Earth's Atlantic Ocean from aboard the space station orbiting our planet.

— Chelsea Gohd, Space.com, 9 July 2026
Launching today, the Fi Ultra is the world’s first dog tracker to adopt T-Satellite, T-Mobile’s implementation of Starlink Mobile, which uses orbiting satellites to beam data to phones on the ground.

— Michael Kan, PC Magazine, 8 July 2026

Definition of orbiting

Adjective

Our planet sits along one of the galaxy’s spiral arms, about halfway from the center, according to NASA.

— Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 2 July 2026
Things rapidly spiral out of control for the quartet as a waking nightmare, filled with ghostly figures and sudden disappearances, unfolds.

— Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 2 July 2026

Definition of spiral

Verb

Cheers roared from the crowd encircling the concrete arena as two skateboarders slammed into each other at top speed.

— Miami Herald, Miami Herald, 25 June 2026
Styled by Brad Goreski, Moore wore a custom cobalt blue Self Portrait gown with an oversized bow encircling the hips, falling into a train.

— Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 22 May 2026

Definition of encircling

Verb

In the days since, passage in the Strait has slowed considerably, with only 25 ships crossing on Wednesday, according to Kpler data.

— Elise Spenner, ABC News, 9 July 2026
Some trucks crossing the border have had to wait anything from a few hours to several days in the wake of the war, the people said, adding that those delays have worsened in the past month.

— Matthew Martin, semafor.com, 9 July 2026

Definition of crossing

Browse Nearby Words

circlets

circling

circuit

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Circling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/circling. Accessed 10 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of circling

adjective

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster on circling

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

effulgence

Popular in Grammar & Usage

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)

Popular in Wordplay

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 10

Popular

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

Games & Quizzes