clouding

verb

present participle of cloud
1
as in obscuring
to make dark, dim, or indistinct the diner's dark interior, clouded with smoke and grease

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in confusing
to make (something) unclear to the understanding cloud the issue with obscure statistics

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 clouding Then Kris drifts outside, her face clouding, followed by Billy. — Jp Mangalindan, Time, 10 Aug. 2026 What underlying assumptions are clouding my strategic judgment? — Simone Lundquist, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026 Wholesale inflation fell from May to June on plunging energy prices, but intensifying hostilities with Iran are clouding the outlook. — Paul Wiseman, Los Angeles Times, 15 July 2026 Are foggy relationships clouding your goals and ambitions? — Usa Today, USA Today, 25 June 2026 The Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965 were recent enough for Black Americans to understand the nation’s possibility for change, yet the routine violence didn’t diminish, clouding the wave of optimism with grief and disillusionment. — Rae-Aila Crumble, Pitchfork, 25 June 2026 What’s more, handling a mummy exposes it to potential contamination from modern bacteria and fungi, further clouding the picture of its microbial makeup. — Mindy Weisberger, CNN Money, 8 June 2026 But as that dream inches closer to reality, legal squabbles are clouding that momentum. — Samantha Subin, CNBC, 29 May 2026 Republicans want to pass the bill as quickly as possible, but the party-line bill’s exposure to anti-weaponization fund amendments is clouding its path in both chambers. — Burgess Everett, semafor.com, 29 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for clouding
  1. obscuring
  2. confusing
  3. blurring
  4. obfuscating
  5. darkening
  6. muddying
  7. fogging
  8. complicating
Verb
  • But there were too many multiple traumas and trauma swappings that wound up obscuring the issues.
    — Beatrice Verhoeven, HollywoodReporter, 15 Aug. 2026
  • In the video, the shooting officer’s arms and long gun block his camera’s view, obscuring Tucker in the moments before he was shot.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of obscuring
Verb
  • The light entering my eyes would bend at two different angles, confusing my brain and making my vision a little blurry.
    — E. Tammy Kim, New Yorker, 15 Aug. 2026
  • Bringing in extra mythology wouldn’t make the confusing parts any less confusing, and would just confuse the parts that aren’t confusing at all.
    — Television Critic, Los Angeles Times, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of confusing
Verb
  • The examples run on and on, and at a certain point the numbers begin blurring together.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 14 Aug. 2026
  • Boron nitride gives the formula its silky slip and creates a blurring effect, while avocado oil adds conditioning moisture so a matte doesn’t look like skin is parched.
    — Christa Joanna Lee, Allure, 14 Aug. 2026
Definition of blurring
Verb
  • The lawsuit expanded on that, accusing the village of obfuscating the nature of the development during the earlier stages of approvals.
    — Joseph States, Chicago Tribune, 7 Aug. 2026
  • The revelation is the latest example of how engaging the technology — and obfuscating such use — can roil audiences eager to support new films.
    — Corbin Bolies, Variety, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of obfuscating
Verb
  • During a total eclipse, the moon completely covers the face of the sun, darkening the sky and revealing just the sun’s outer atmosphere called the corona.
    — Devika Rao, TheWeek, 12 Aug. 2026
  • Instead of darkening the sky and unveiling the sun's signature circular ring, this time around the moon will only partly cover the sun, giving it a crescent shape, according to NASA.
    — Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of darkening
Verb
  • But Trump’s approval ratings have suffered a year and a half into his second term and are muddying a race that Blakeman wants to keep squarely focused on Hochul and her management of the state.
    — David Sivak, The Washington Examiner, 15 Aug. 2026
  • Conflicting accounts of bilateral engagement are muddying the progress of a deal to open the Hormuz strait.
    — Sean Conlon,Hugh Leask,Justina Lee,Sarah Min, CNBC, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of muddying
Verb
  • The result blurs the line between shimmer and velvet-matte, and looks like condensation fogging up a glass.
    — Ariel Wodarcyk, InStyle, 6 July 2026
  • Breaking the cycle of mosquito breeding in a non-toxic way reduces reliance on harmful fogging chemicals, which kill insects indiscriminately.
    — Rae Ford, Martha Stewart, 10 June 2026
Definition of fogging
Verb
  • Conventional versions can contain elastic bands, clasps, clips, foam and multiple synthetic textiles, complicating recycling and other end-of-life options.
    — Alexandra Harrell, Footwear News, 13 Aug. 2026
  • Even so, Chinese firms still trail their American counterparts by more than 6-to-1 in capital raised from markets over the past two years, with Washington’s chip export curbs complicating the catch-up effort.
    — Beatrice Nolan, Fortune, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of complicating

Browse Nearby Words

cloudiness
clouding
cloudland
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Clouding.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/clouding. Accessed 19 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on clouding

Nglish: Translation of clouding for Spanish Speakers

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 balmy

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

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

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

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

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

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

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

Is “GIF” Pronounced “Jiff” or “Giff”?

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

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

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
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
image of a green cube out of place in a lineup of red spheres
Odd Word Out: Synonyms Vol. 2 Quiz Figure out which word isn't like the others.
See All