1
as in staining
to make dirty
a tablecloth daubed with too many spills to ignore any longer
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in smearing
to rub an oily or sticky substance over
he begins his nightly transformation into a circus clown by daubing greasepaint on his face
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 daubing
But there is a distinction, Kutwala said, between flying flags from one’s own property and daubing paint across the town.
—
Olivia Kemp, CNN Money, 29 Aug. 2025
Olivia Kemp, CNN Money, 29 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for daubing
Verb
-
Leave enough room to mow around the tree, cut it back each season, and make any repairs to your fence, such as staining or board replacement.—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
10 May 2026
-
Sometimes the warning sign is subtle staining — especially yellow or brown discoloration on walls or ceilings.—
Ryan Brennan
May 8,
Kansas City Star,
8 May 2026
Verb
-
In 2012, the gossip site Gawker, infamous for smearing conservative activists, published embarrassing footage of Hogan that had been secretly recorded and had no legitimate news value.—
George Harris,
The Orlando Sentinel,
3 Apr. 2026
-
The pigment lasts all day without smearing.—
Catharine Malzahn,
Glamour,
18 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
And Hanceville’s fate is as murky as the fog that pours in at night, blotting out buildings and blackening the road ahead.—
Rob Picheta,
CNN Money,
7 Feb. 2026
-
These tungsten atoms would then condense on the slightly cooler inside of the glass bulb, blackening it and dimming the light over time.—
Natalia Sánchez Loayza,
Scientific American,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The twins daydreamed about eating Kentucky Fried Chicken and painting their new bedrooms pink and blue.—
Annie Hylton,
New Yorker,
14 May 2026
-
Sigg’s intention was always to gift the collection—a nearly 1,500-work group of Chinese contemporary art spanning everything from painting to performance and digital art—to a Chinese institution, so that it could be seen by the public.—
Harrison Jacobs,
ARTnews.com,
13 May 2026
Verb
-
With the help of your Instant Pot, spaghetti and meatballs come together in under an hour without dirtying multiple dishes.—
Jenna Sims,
Southern Living,
24 Feb. 2026
-
Keep them in reserve as a sleep sock to ward off icy toes and prevent sweat and skin oils from dirtying your down sleeping bag.—
Adam Roy,
Outside,
28 Dec. 2025
Verb
-
Spring means beautiful flowers, fragrant lilacs – and lots of tree pollen coating cars and setting off sneezing, wheezing and headaches.—
Levi Keller,
The Conversation,
5 May 2026
-
The process begins by separating a couple of small silicon chips from a larger sheet, then coating them with a layer of oxide in a high-temperature furnace.—
Jon Martindale,
PC Magazine,
23 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Richie is constantly messing things up, Michael says.—
Erin Jensen,
USA Today,
8 May 2026
-
But Grandmere would not be messing with her phone while driving, anyway.—
Doug Turnbull,
AJC.com,
3 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Daubing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/daubing. Accessed 15 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
