as in shrinking
Related Words
Dissimilar 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 cowering
Zuzana Říhová, Literary Hub, 26 Sep. 2025
As a result, the poor Rottweiler could be seen cowering against the wall and looking incredibly nervous in the cat’s presence.
—Alyce Collins, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 Sep. 2025
The commuter, who was still wearing her pizzeria uniform, was captured on train surveillance video cowering as her attacker towered over her minutes before the attack.
—Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, FOXNews.com, 10 Sep. 2025
The staff member can be seen cowering down to fend off the attack and then turns and squares up to the irate passenger, who’s wearing a green colored top and army green pants.
—Michael Dorgan, Fox News, 29 Nov. 2024
The trauma of war is ever-present in Honda's vision, which sees citizens fleeing for their lives and cowering in the rubble of their homes.
—Katie Rife, EW.com, 18 Oct. 2024
Neither do the cowering members of Slough House.
—Erik Kain, Forbes, 9 Oct. 2024
Hence the obtuse rabbis, the cowering Uncle Yasha, and, in Aliyah of the 1990s, the naked Russian woman, presumably a prostitute, presenting herself doggy-style.
—Judith Shulevitz, The Atlantic, 5 Oct. 2024
Adjective
There is a cowering quality to her body, even her voice.
—Zuzana Říhová, Literary Hub, 26 Sep. 2025
As a result, the poor Rottweiler could be seen cowering against the wall and looking incredibly nervous in the cat’s presence.
—Alyce Collins, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 Sep. 2025
The commuter, who was still wearing her pizzeria uniform, was captured on train surveillance video cowering as her attacker towered over her minutes before the attack.
—Sarah Rumpf-Whitten, FOXNews.com, 10 Sep. 2025
The staff member can be seen cowering down to fend off the attack and then turns and squares up to the irate passenger, who’s wearing a green colored top and army green pants.
—Michael Dorgan, Fox News, 29 Nov. 2024
The trauma of war is ever-present in Honda's vision, which sees citizens fleeing for their lives and cowering in the rubble of their homes.
—Katie Rife, EW.com, 18 Oct. 2024
Neither do the cowering members of Slough House.
—Erik Kain, Forbes, 9 Oct. 2024
Hence the obtuse rabbis, the cowering Uncle Yasha, and, in Aliyah of the 1990s, the naked Russian woman, presumably a prostitute, presenting herself doggy-style.
—Judith Shulevitz, The Atlantic, 5 Oct. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cowering
Verb
-
Bills can be seen visibly cringing in both clips as the two dancers fall to the ground.—
Tabitha Parent,
PEOPLE,
29 Sep. 2025
-
Pub purists, meanwhile, are cringing.—
Deirdre Bardolf,
FOXNews.com,
6 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Ross passed the day's examination with flying colors, barely flinching at the rubber chicken.—
Craig Shoup,
Nashville Tennessean,
3 Oct. 2025
-
Skubal, apparently flinching with the noise, balked for only the second time in his career.—
Cody Stavenhagen,
New York Times,
24 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
And the movement could never be as iconic as Sergio Busquets’ submissive touch, pause and guide for Lionel Messi to embark on one of the best solo goals ever seen in the 2011 El Clasico semi-final at the Bernabeu.—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
2 Oct. 2025
-
Jason Ardizzone-West’s set is a predictable slick white box, its blank surfaces submissive to the constant barrage of Brad Peterson’s video projections.—
Sara Holdren,
Vulture,
10 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
The president has been calling aggressively for lower rates and a more acquiescent Fed.—
Jill Goldsmith,
Deadline,
17 Sep. 2025
-
Where Chelsea’s domestic overseers have been largely acquiescent to their accounting ingenuity, the same can’t be said abroad.—
Chris Weatherspoon,
New York Times,
21 Apr. 2025
Adjective
-
Accommodating, which is unassertive and cooperative, prioritizes the needs and preferences of others over one’s own in order to maintain harmony.—
Ellen Choi,
Forbes,
10 Mar. 2025
-
Shy and unassertive, she’s often been overlooked by others and kept to herself.—
Yasmine AlSayyad,
The New Yorker,
9 Jan. 2023
Adjective
-
Some exceptions are expected to be included in the rule concerning avoiding conflict with appraisal requirements or other state laws,, including if the award was made without authority, is not compliant with the appraisal provision, or if fraud, accident, or a material mistake was involved.—
Giulia Carbonaro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
3 Oct. 2025
-
The Evers administration must continue to be rated as substantially compliant in the monitor reports in order to persuade Peterson to drop the consent decree.—
Molly Beck,
jsonline.com,
2 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
But there is a weariness here, too, a resigned cynicism that carries the film into its second act, which zooms ahead some 15 years and finds Perfidia’s child, Willa (Chase Infiniti), now a teenager living in hiding with her father, Bob.—
Richard Lawson,
HollywoodReporter,
17 Sep. 2025
-
Just 14 yards on resigned run plays were, however, according to Pro Football Focus.—
Oliver Thomas,
Forbes.com,
1 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
Maryland’s appeal points to Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act, which instructs federal judges to be highly deferential in evaluating state criminal convictions.—
Zach Schonfeld,
The Hill,
24 Sep. 2025
-
The joke was neither too harsh nor too deferential.—
Hershal Pandya,
Vulture,
15 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cowering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cowering. Accessed 9 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share