1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

circling 1 of 2

adjective

as in swirling

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

circling

2 of 2

verb

present participle of circle
1
as in surrounding
to form a circle around everyone circled the lectern and waited their turn to read from the Bible

Synonyms & Similar Words
2
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
Ohtani returned to the lineup Monday and felt something in his arm after a swing, circling his right arm afterward. — Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 10 Sep. 2026 Meanwhile, Sasha and Morgan have been circling something neither of them has been able to admit to. — Katie Campione, Deadline, 10 Sep. 2026 After circling the bases, Volpe took a curtain call for Yankee Stadium fans who chanted his name several times throughout the night. — ABC News, 10 Sep. 2026 Tired of circling the block looking for parking before a night out in the Fort Worth Stockyards? — Emily Holshouser, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 9 Sep. 2026 The mathematical problem concerns the Navier-Stokes equations, which govern the flow of fluids—from the whirlpool circling your bathtub’s drain to the turbulent winds El Niño hurls across the North American continent. — Joseph Howlett, Scientific American, 8 Sep. 2026 For 30 minutes, a dark shadow moves underwater, circling the boat. — Evgenia Anastasakos, Chicago Tribune, 8 Sep. 2026 The streaming giant is circling Andres Cantor to provide Spanish-language coverage of the event. — Alex Weprin, HollywoodReporter, 8 Sep. 2026 Sketch the logo, share the joke, test the recipe, or try whatever has been circling your imagination. — Tarot.com, Baltimore Sun, 2 Sep. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for circling
  1. swirling
  2. surrounding
  3. orbiting
  4. spiral
  5. encircling
  6. traversing
  7. spiraling
  8. crossing
Adjective
  • These monstrous masses are themselves dark, but their formidable gravity violently vacuums up gas and other nearby matter, generating rings of hot, swirling detritus that completely outshine the stars around them.
    — Quanta Magazine, Quanta Magazine, 14 Sep. 2026
  • One thing to keep in mind with all the swirling headlines is that the AI buildout has been supply constrained.
    — Jeff Marks, CNBC, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of swirling
Verb
  • And thanks to another recent state law — the Live Local Act — developers would be able to sidestep local zoning regulations, allowing for a project that would smash height restrictions to tower above all surrounding buildings.
    — Daniel Rivero, Miami Herald, 16 Sep. 2026
  • Dillard’s work, though not exclusively about nature, often focused on the natural world, the cruelty and beauty of both flora and fauna, narrowing in on the extremity of the biological systems surrounding us.
    — Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of surrounding
Verb
  • Transits favor planets orbiting close to their stars, particularly large planets that block more starlight and complete their orbits frequently.
    — Thomas Fauchez, The Conversation, 14 Sep. 2026
  • The two orbiting observatories collectively discovered 27 new Trans-Neptunian Objects, or TNOs, all less than 25 miles (40 kilometers) across, with the smallest being only 6 miles (10 kilometers) in diameter.
    — Keith Cooper, Space.com, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of orbiting
Adjective
  • That salon, Mayfair, became the setting for a film that follows Zaineen (Zaineen Chowdhury Karim), a bride-to-be whose wedding preparations spiral into a battle with her own body.
    — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 5 Sep. 2026
  • During his testimony, the prosecution produced a spiral notebook in which Clancy had left instructions for caretakers on when to put down the baby, which vegetables to prepare for dinner, how to cut up the sweet potatoes.
    — Eren Orbey, New Yorker, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of spiral
Verb
  • Dumas watched, charmed, his arms encircling his wife’s shoulders, and accepted an ice-cream sundae in a silver parfait cup.
    — Lauren Collins, New Yorker, 7 Sep. 2026
  • There are no bleachers, so spectators set up lawn chairs encircling the field.
    — Kelenna Onukwugha, Christian Science Monitor, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of encircling
Verb
  • The production’s adventurousness, traversing every corner of Brad Bentz’s scenic design, can have a diffuse effect.
    — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 17 Sep. 2026
  • People were part of Pleistocene history, adapting to the colder climates in the north and traversing the unglaciated regions to the south of the glacial margins.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 9 Sep. 2026
Definition of traversing
Adjective
  • Libfeld brought a massive, spiraling kudu horn to practice with at a recent Torat Emet shofar class.
    — Lois K. Solomon, Sun Sentinel, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Aside from a spiraling Wanda, there was also an onslaught of high-profile cameos, which almost felt like fandom wish fulfillment designed to keep us entertained when Wanda wasn’t around.
    — EW Staff, Entertainment Weekly, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of spiraling
Verb
  • Clinical studies have shown that crossing your legs at the knee can temporarily raise systolic and diastolic blood pressure readings.
    — Ayesha Gulzar, Verywell Health, 17 Sep. 2026
  • The growing menace of drones crossing into Romania’s skies, many of which officials have blamed on Russia, prompted the NATO member to shoot down four drones this year, the first time since the war next door started.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 17 Sep. 2026
Definition of crossing

Browse Nearby Words

circlets
circling
circuit
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Circling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/circling. Accessed 19 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of aggrandize

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

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

Popular in Wordplay

See More

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Words from the 'Odyssey'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 18
See More

Popular

See More

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
crayons-in-a-circle
Guess the Color Quiz Questions that use the whole box of crayons.
See All