dragging 1 of 2

adjective

as in leisurely
moving or proceeding at less than the normal, desirable, or required speed a mysterious, cloaked figure with a strange, dragging walk

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

dragging

2 of 2

verb

present participle of drag
1
as in pulling
to cause to follow by applying steady force on the deliveryman dragged the barrels over against the wall

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in delaying
to move or act slowly one of the climbers was beginning to drag

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in crawling
to move slowly the play dragged and seemed to take forever to get to its predictable conclusion

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 dragging
Verb
The untethered AUVs hover above the seabed instead of dragging equipment across it, reducing sediment disturbance and limiting ecosystem disruption. — Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 15 July 2026 Centre-back Chadi Riad flicks the outswinging corner across goal, with his team-mates’ runs dragging Haiti’s defence forward. — Anantaajith Raghuraman, New York Times, 14 July 2026 The car overturned at the Top Gear Dunsfold Park Aerodrome, dragging Flintoff face down underneath for about 50 metres and leaving him with severe facial disfigurement injuries, rib injuries and trauma. — Max Goldbart, Deadline, 13 July 2026 Israel’s military campaigns have significantly degraded Hezbollah, while public opinion in Lebanon has increasingly turned against the group, blaming it for repeatedly dragging the country into unnecessary wars. — Anthony Wanis-St John, The Conversation, 10 July 2026 The problem with measuring frame dragging using Earth-orbiting satellites is that the Earth is not a perfect sphere. — Jacek Krywko, ArsTechnica, 10 July 2026 According to Bartolai, the Health Department conducts surveillance work, dragging sheets of fabric through tick habitats and then testing the bugs for various pathogens. — Joseph States, Chicago Tribune, 9 July 2026 The Vietnam peace talks would completely fall apart by December 1972, dragging the war out until April 1975. — Tracy Grant, Encyclopedia Britannica, 9 July 2026 On Tuesday, the roller-coaster ride for AI stocks whipped back down, dragging Wall Street lower. — ABC News, 8 July 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dragging
  1. leisurely
  2. pulling
  3. delaying
  4. crawling
  5. slow
  6. hauling
  7. lingering
  8. creeping
Adjective
  • Nirmal Kumar, 44, a businessman, said what began as a leisurely trip descended into chaos within minutes as a storm lashed the boat.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 13 July 2026
  • With over 29,000 five-star ratings from nurses, teachers, and podiatrists alike, the Aerothotic Comfy Flip-flops deserve a spot in your suitcase this summer, no matter if your itinerary calls for leisurely walks by the pool or intensive hikes.
    — Julia Morlino, Travel + Leisure, 12 July 2026
Definition of leisurely
Verb
  • Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni, a former right back who played alongside Messi in the 2006 World Cup, solved that problem by moving Messi to right wing, tweaking formations and pulling from a bench superior to England’s.
    — Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 July 2026
  • By July 11, Taco Bell had begun pulling some ingredients, including lettuce and cilantro, from some Michigan restaurants.
    — Mike Snider, USA Today, 19 July 2026
Definition of pulling
Verb
  • Crabtree said in his order that the court shared the government’s concerns about delaying the proceedings.
    — Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star, 17 July 2026
  • Still, Goldman acknowledged that delaying an IVF procedure isn’t exactly an easy thing to do.
    — Cara Lynn Shultz, PEOPLE, 17 July 2026
Definition of delaying
Verb
  • With fervent editing, careful scene geography, and assured direction, the walk before the run can be tense enough to send viewers crawling out of their seats, willing the fugitive onscreen to get a move on already.
    — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 15 July 2026
  • Health inspectors observed one small roach-like insect crawling from the mop sink to under the nearby prep table.
    — Shambhavi Rimal, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 July 2026
Definition of crawling
Adjective
  • After the shooting, the victim’s car was seen on surveillance footage driving in slow circles as federal agents appeared to try and stop the vehicle.
    — Nicki Brown, CNN Money, 18 July 2026
  • Thus far, capital markets more broadly have been slow to respond to this threat for a variety of reasons.
    — Justin Worland, Time, 18 July 2026
Definition of slow
Verb
  • The Falcon 9's upper stage continued hauling the 21 satellites to LEO.
    — Mike Wall, Space.com, 16 July 2026
  • The rocket, which is capable of hauling 16,000 kilograms into low-Earth orbit, is a commercial variant of the Long March 10A vehicle.
    — Lee Billings, Scientific American, 10 July 2026
Definition of hauling
Verb
  • The floods drew attention to still unhealed wounds — and lingering regrets.
    — Alaa Elassar, CNN Money, 20 July 2026
  • Despite the lingering outages, the disruptions remained concentrated rather than widespread.
    — Christopher Scarglato, Baltimore Sun, 19 July 2026
Definition of lingering
Verb
  • They’re concentrated in the Southeast, but lone star ticks have been making their way north and creeping in from the coasts.
    — Meg Tirrell, CNN Money, 14 July 2026
  • Farther north in the Bay Area, residents should expect temperatures in the 90s and some hot spots creeping into the 100s with little relief from the heat overnight, the National Weather Service said.
    — Grace Toohey, Los Angeles Times, 13 July 2026
Definition of creeping

Browse Nearby Words

draggers
dragging
dragging one's feet
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Dragging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dragging. Accessed 21 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on dragging

Nglish: Translation of dragging 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 dog days

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'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?

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

Why do we say 'fly off the handle'?
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
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
child-detective
Spot the Misspelled Word July 2026 Those little red underlines can't help you now...
See All