as in climbing
to move (as up or over something) often with the help of the hands in holding or pulling
clambered over a wall and was never seen again
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Recent Examples of clambering
The piece is a collection of disused shoemaker boxes, once used by cobblers to keep tools, pressed against each other and stacked up, clambering toward the ceiling.
—
Edna Bonhomme, Artforum, 1 Oct. 2025
By the end of the night, so many fans had crowd-surfed from the pit to the stage, clambering onto the platform, that the band members were barely visible.
—Audrey Gibbs, Nashville Tennessean, 16 Sep. 2025
Even back on board, the show continues after dark, with pelicans and reef sharks drawn to the yacht’s lights and sea lions sometimes clambering onto the aft deck.
—Rachel Ingram, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025
Public art offers a chance for everyone to enjoy, as witnessed by the children clambering all over the octopus and residents enjoying coffee with a bronze hippo.
—Hannah Goeke, Christian Science Monitor, 3 Sep. 2025
After clambering back onto the platform, medics took him to Bellevue Hospital in stable condition with face injuries, cops said.
—John Annese, New York Daily News, 10 Aug. 2025
On the night before the verdict, they were joined by more than a dozen journalists, clambering for the best angle of their emerging messages, pasted up on walls already crowded by other snippets of testimony and poetry.
—Catherine Porter, New York Times, 20 Dec. 2024
This once meant waiting in long lines outside stores like Walmart and Best Buy in the early morning hours, clambering over one another to snag electronics, beauty items, and other unaffordable gifts at a steal.
—Connor Sturges, Condé Nast Traveler, 3 Dec. 2024
Even now, original — meaning freshly made, conceptually new — Christmas rom-coms are clambering out of the trenches, not only on Hallmark and Lifetime, which owned the breed for a while, but on Netflix and Hulu and everywhere else seeking to grab a slice of that cinnamon-scented, sentimental pie.
—Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 22 Nov. 2024
Edna Bonhomme, Artforum, 1 Oct. 2025
By the end of the night, so many fans had crowd-surfed from the pit to the stage, clambering onto the platform, that the band members were barely visible.
—Audrey Gibbs, Nashville Tennessean, 16 Sep. 2025
Even back on board, the show continues after dark, with pelicans and reef sharks drawn to the yacht’s lights and sea lions sometimes clambering onto the aft deck.
—Rachel Ingram, Forbes.com, 11 Sep. 2025
Public art offers a chance for everyone to enjoy, as witnessed by the children clambering all over the octopus and residents enjoying coffee with a bronze hippo.
—Hannah Goeke, Christian Science Monitor, 3 Sep. 2025
After clambering back onto the platform, medics took him to Bellevue Hospital in stable condition with face injuries, cops said.
—John Annese, New York Daily News, 10 Aug. 2025
On the night before the verdict, they were joined by more than a dozen journalists, clambering for the best angle of their emerging messages, pasted up on walls already crowded by other snippets of testimony and poetry.
—Catherine Porter, New York Times, 20 Dec. 2024
This once meant waiting in long lines outside stores like Walmart and Best Buy in the early morning hours, clambering over one another to snag electronics, beauty items, and other unaffordable gifts at a steal.
—Connor Sturges, Condé Nast Traveler, 3 Dec. 2024
Even now, original — meaning freshly made, conceptually new — Christmas rom-coms are clambering out of the trenches, not only on Hallmark and Lifetime, which owned the breed for a while, but on Netflix and Hulu and everywhere else seeking to grab a slice of that cinnamon-scented, sentimental pie.
—Robert Lloyd, Los Angeles Times, 22 Nov. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for clambering
Verb
-
To get on a bus is to spend some time climbing aboard, or being pushed from behind, or being pulled up by the armpit.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
3 Apr. 2026
-
This weekend the heat is back, with inland valleys climbing into the mid-80s and San Francisco on track to hit 80 degrees for the eighth or ninth time this year.—
Greg Porter,
San Francisco Chronicle,
3 Apr. 2026
Verb
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With the interference scrambling the ringside situation, Paul got hold of the brass knuckles and used them against The Usos, allowing The Vision to secure the pinfall and win the championships.—
Andrew Ravens,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Mar. 2026
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First-time business owners can successfully move forward rather than scrambling around and making decisions based on frustration.—
Daniel Fusch,
USA Today,
30 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Clambering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/clambering. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.
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