as in cunning
clever at attaining one's ends by indirect and often deceptive means
a fraudulent scheme contrived by a group of greedy and designing people
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in planning
to have in mind as a purpose or goal
early on she had designed to a top position in a major insurance company
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in preparing
to work out the details of (something) in advance
the foreman designed a better layout for the factory floor to improve efficiency
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 designing
Jasmin Malik Chua, Sourcing Journal, 5 Dec. 2025
Broadcom shares have surged as Wall Street positions the chipmaker as a play on Alphabet’s growing AI dominance, thanks to Broadcom’s role in co-designing Google’s custom Tensor Processing Units (TPUs) that power the new standout Gemini 3 artificial intelligence model.
—Morgan Chittum, CNBC, 26 Nov. 2025
That means giving up or sharing power and privilege and doing the hard work of listening and co-designing solutions with the marginalized groups.
—Setche Kwamu-Nana, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Nov. 2020
In the 1960s, the computing pioneer Grace Murray Hopper would hand out 11.8-inch lengths of wire to illustrate how designing smaller electronic parts would create faster computers.
—John Markoff, New York Times, 29 June 2018
Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 27 Mar. 2026
In Los Angeles on Wednesday, a jury found both YouTube and Meta, which owns and operates platforms including Instagram and Facebook, liable for harms to children for designing their platforms to hook young users.
—ABC News, 26 Mar. 2026
He was accused of creating spectacle and of designing spaces unsuitable for art.
—Norman Foster, Artforum, 26 Mar. 2026
The jurors found that Meta, which owns Instagram, and YouTube, owned by Google, were negligent in designing their products and failing to warn users about potential harms.
—Editorial Board, Washington Post, 26 Mar. 2026
Jurors on Wednesday found Instagram and YouTube liable for designing platforms that are meant to addict young users.
—Los Angeles Times, 26 Mar. 2026
Determining how much oxygen the heart is or isn’t using can help detect heart failure, important in designing treatment in early stages of a condition that affects 1 in 4 Americans over a lifetime.
—Elizabeth Cooney, STAT, 25 Mar. 2026
Getting modelling right under these conditions is essential to designing the engine for ignition timing, flame stability, and ultimately thrust output.
—Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 21 Mar. 2026
Suzanne continued designing under her own name, working both on interiors and products for brands including the Lacquer Company and the Mosaic Factory.
—Mark Ellwood, Robb Report, 21 Mar. 2026
Adjective
That means brands funding cooling infrastructure, working with workers and unions to establish robust heat-stress protections and co-designing transition plans with workers from the outset.
—Jasmin Malik Chua, Sourcing Journal, 5 Dec. 2025
Broadcom shares have surged as Wall Street positions the chipmaker as a play on Alphabet’s growing AI dominance, thanks to Broadcom’s role in co-designing Google’s custom Tensor Processing Units (TPUs) that power the new standout Gemini 3 artificial intelligence model.
—Morgan Chittum, CNBC, 26 Nov. 2025
That means giving up or sharing power and privilege and doing the hard work of listening and co-designing solutions with the marginalized groups.
—Setche Kwamu-Nana, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Nov. 2020
In the 1960s, the computing pioneer Grace Murray Hopper would hand out 11.8-inch lengths of wire to illustrate how designing smaller electronic parts would create faster computers.
—John Markoff, New York Times, 29 June 2018
Verb
Kluge remained active into his 90s, writing books and designing art exhibitions.
—Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 27 Mar. 2026
In Los Angeles on Wednesday, a jury found both YouTube and Meta, which owns and operates platforms including Instagram and Facebook, liable for harms to children for designing their platforms to hook young users.
—ABC News, 26 Mar. 2026
He was accused of creating spectacle and of designing spaces unsuitable for art.
—Norman Foster, Artforum, 26 Mar. 2026
The jurors found that Meta, which owns Instagram, and YouTube, owned by Google, were negligent in designing their products and failing to warn users about potential harms.
—Editorial Board, Washington Post, 26 Mar. 2026
Jurors on Wednesday found Instagram and YouTube liable for designing platforms that are meant to addict young users.
—Los Angeles Times, 26 Mar. 2026
Determining how much oxygen the heart is or isn’t using can help detect heart failure, important in designing treatment in early stages of a condition that affects 1 in 4 Americans over a lifetime.
—Elizabeth Cooney, STAT, 25 Mar. 2026
Getting modelling right under these conditions is essential to designing the engine for ignition timing, flame stability, and ultimately thrust output.
—Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 21 Mar. 2026
Suzanne continued designing under her own name, working both on interiors and products for brands including the Lacquer Company and the Mosaic Factory.
—Mark Ellwood, Robb Report, 21 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for designing
Adjective
-
In state media comedy shows, jokes about Putin are told from time to time, but they are used to bolster his image as a powerful, cunning leader, and hold up Russia as a great country.—
Neringa Klumbytė,
The Conversation,
4 Mar. 2026
-
These ambitious, cunning, and often amoral Cold War operatives were usually marginal or even inconsequential figures at home.—
Alfred McCoy,
Literary Hub,
26 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Despite those risks, women riders in South Florida are becoming more visible on the motorcycle scene, planning their own meetups, safety briefings and events across Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties.—
Brenda Miranda,
Miami Herald,
25 Mar. 2026
-
Jefferies Financial Group — Shares of the investment bank rallied nearly 7% after The Financial Times, citing people familiar, reported that Japan’s second-largest lender, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, is planning a possible takeover of Jefferies.—
Sarah Min,
CNBC,
24 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The whole process took barely a minute, but the actors had likely spent weeks preparing for it.—
Taran Khan,
The Dial,
24 Mar. 2026
-
Start preparing your taxes with these options Offers in this section are from affiliate partners and selected based on a combination of engagement, product relevance, compensation, and consistent availability.—
Brian Sloan,Dan Avery,
CNBC,
24 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Marvin’s a cute little mushroom living in a cozy home beneath a mighty cedar tree.—
Mary Ann Grossmann,
Twin Cities,
28 Mar. 2026
-
Dry off and look cute at the same time with Katydid beach or gym towels.—
Tory Johnson,
ABC News,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Cable wasn’t intending to score, but her serve to the top of the box was headed backward by a defender, and the ball went over the goalkeeper’s head.—
Matt Le Cren,
Chicago Tribune,
23 Mar. 2026
-
Golden called for aggressive full-court pressure, intending to foul despite the Hawkeyes being in the bonus.—
Edgar Thompson,
The Orlando Sentinel,
23 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
He and Mason envision using the app in conjunction with a sports property, like organizing nationwide college tournaments for World Pong without the cost of dispatching operators to each location.—
Justin Birnbaum,
Sportico.com,
26 Mar. 2026
-
That’s a song about a heavy topic — organizing an intervention for one of your best friends.—
Mikael Wood,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Even though researchers have found no evidence that contemporary populations use one hemisphere of the brain any more than the other, every part of this picture is presented with slick confidence.—
Becca Rothfeld,
New Yorker,
30 Mar. 2026
-
With water constantly dripping from above, the surface was slick and unstable.—
Brit McCandless Farmer,
CBS News,
29 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
But arranging spheres becomes significantly more complex in higher dimensions, which allow for more arrangements and symmetries.—
Manon Bischoff,
Scientific American,
26 Mar. 2026
-
Unbeknownst to Audrey, her cousin had secretly coordinated with several of her closest friends, arranging surprise appearances on the plane and at their destination.—
Ronnie Li,
USA Today,
26 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Designing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/designing. Accessed 30 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
