1
as in presiding
highest in rank or authority
with the death of the general, he instantly became the commanding officer on the field of battle
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in prominent
likely to attract attention
even in a room filled with world leaders, he was a commanding presence
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in directing
Related Words
1
as in instructing
to issue orders to (someone) by right of authority
the general commanded his troops with Caesar-like imperiousness
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in ordering
to request the doing of by virtue of one's authority
the governor has commanded that all state flags be flown at half-mast
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in demanding
to ask for (something) earnestly or with authority
an act of courage that commands the admiration of all who witnessed it
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in governing
to exercise authority or power over
a cabinet secretary who commands the largest department in the federal government
Synonyms & Similar Words
5
as in having
to keep, control, or experience as one's own
local government does not command the resources that are needed to respond to such a huge disaster
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
6
as in dominating
to look down on
for centuries an imposing castle has commanded that stretch of the river
Synonyms & Similar Words
7
as in leading
to serve as leader of
the head of the agency commands an army of workers trained to respond to the immediate needs of disaster victims
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
8
as in asking
to set or receive as a price
commands a high fee for his decorating services
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of commanding
Sylvie Zhuang, CNN Money, 13 May 2026
Senior midfielder Meghan O’Donnell, who scored her eighth goal of the season during Libertyville’s 3-2 win over Waubonsie Valley on Thursday, said Chung is a commanding presence.
—Bobby Narang, Chicago Tribune, 1 May 2026
Allison Degrushe, Entertainment Weekly, 11 Mar. 2026
Shea’s commanding lead was not at all unexpected.
—Austin Sanders, Austin American Statesman, 3 Mar. 2026
Justice Delos Santos, Mercury News, 3 June 2026
Early election returns Tuesday night showed Placer County Supervisor Shanti Landon on track to win reelection outright, holding a commanding lead over challenger Holly Andreatta in the race for the county’s 2nd District seat.
—Nicole Buss, Sacbee.com, 3 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for commanding
Adjective
Xi’s expected to be a commanding presence as host, opposite a US president known more for relying on gut instinct than meticulous preparation.
—Sylvie Zhuang, CNN Money, 13 May 2026
Senior midfielder Meghan O’Donnell, who scored her eighth goal of the season during Libertyville’s 3-2 win over Waubonsie Valley on Thursday, said Chung is a commanding presence.
—Bobby Narang, Chicago Tribune, 1 May 2026
Noun
With his unmistakable voice and commanding presence, Dance has left his mark on everything from and Alien 3 (1992) and Michael Collins (1996) to Game of Thrones (2011–2015) and The Crown (2019–2020).
—Allison Degrushe, Entertainment Weekly, 11 Mar. 2026
Shea’s commanding lead was not at all unexpected.
—Austin Sanders, Austin American Statesman, 3 Mar. 2026
Verb
While the Giants had a chance to spoil Harrison’s predictable revenge game, the Brewers effectively put the game to rest by scoring four runs in the bottom of the eighth to create a commanding five-run lead.
—Justice Delos Santos, Mercury News, 3 June 2026
Early election returns Tuesday night showed Placer County Supervisor Shanti Landon on track to win reelection outright, holding a commanding lead over challenger Holly Andreatta in the race for the county’s 2nd District seat.
—Nicole Buss, Sacbee.com, 3 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for commanding
Recent Examples of Synonyms for commanding
Adjective
-
Whoop's co-founders spearheaded the computer science and mechanical engineering elements, with Nicolae becoming chief hardware engineer.—
Tom Huddleston Jr.
Blair Baek,
CNBC,
9 June 2026
-
Amazon initially reserved launches on all of the West’s commercially available heavy-lift rockets except those from SpaceX, which owns Starlink, Amazon Leo’s chief competitor.—
Stephen Clark,
ArsTechnica,
9 June 2026
Adjective
-
Her husband, Vali Chandrasekaran, is a prominent television writer.—
Noah Goldberg,
Los Angeles Times,
9 June 2026
-
In the microbiome of mice with worse survival, the researchers also noticed that one strain of bacteria — Sangeribacter muris KT1-3 — was most prominent.—
Angelica Stabile,
FOXNews.com,
8 June 2026
Noun
-
Beyond lead acting contenders Rhea Seehorn, Carlos-Manuel Vesga and Karolina Wydra, the series will need a lift from the guest acting, directing, writing and artisan branches to get there.—
Michael Schneider,
Variety,
1 June 2026
-
Roberson notes that claims of ghost-directing is not a new phenomenon.—
Ryan Gajewski,
HollywoodReporter,
1 June 2026
Verb
-
Both Blue Origin and Space Force officials are instructing the public to report any debris that may wash up on nearby shores.—
Josh Dinner,
Space.com,
29 May 2026
-
Teachers took on a hybrid role, instructing in their classrooms while also accommodating the online learners.—
Jourdan Rodrigue,
New York Times,
28 May 2026
Verb
-
In bodycam footage, officers are heard ordering the driver to turn the vehicle off.—
Tim Fang,
CBS News,
10 June 2026
-
Several students testified that Metcalf, after ordering Anthony to leave his team’s tent, scoffed before Anthony reached a hand into a bag and pulled out a knife.—
Jamie Stengle,
Los Angeles Times,
9 June 2026
Verb
-
State regulations require specific teacher-to-child ratios, and those ratios become especially demanding with infants and toddlers.—
Théoden Janes,
Charlotte Observer,
11 June 2026
-
Addressing reporters for the first time since The Associated Press projected a November runoff between her and Mayor Karen Bass, Raman said residents are losing faith in the city’s ability to solve even basic problems and are demanding a different approach.—
Teresa Liu,
Daily News,
11 June 2026
Verb
-
Of note, recognizing these concerns, the commission voted in December 2025 to establish an ad hoc Governance Committee to review all governing documents and create policies and procedures to allow the pension commission to fulfill its fiduciary duties.—
Helen I. Bennett,
Hartford Courant,
8 June 2026
-
Nepal currently lacks a legal framework governing robotic expeditions on Everest.—
Kaif Shaikh,
Interesting Engineering,
8 June 2026
Verb
-
But during the commonwealth’s rebuttal case, his then-acting supervisor denied having plans to meet with Banfield that day and said his other managers were out of town.—
Nicki Brown,
CNN Money,
5 June 2026
-
One thing, too, that Sara and I talked about early on was having the crew and the musicians eat lunch together every day.—
Chris Willman,
Variety,
4 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Commanding.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/commanding. Accessed 11 Jun. 2026.
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