1
as in piercing
to make a hole or series of holes in
the nerve-jangling sound when a dentist drills a tooth
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in shooting
to strike with a missile from a gun
drilled the target from 100 yards away
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in planting
to put or set into the ground to grow
he drills soybeans in the same rows with corn
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of drilling
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
26 June 2026
SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell told CNBC on June 12, when the company went public, that SpaceX planned to build pipelines and process its own propellant, and was looking into drilling its own natural gas.
—
Eric Berger,
ArsTechnica,
26 June 2026
The crisis was certainly good for oil companies, but the really booming corner of the business was trading, not drilling; European majors outshone their US competitors in first-quarter earnings because of their robust trading desks.
—
Tim McDonnell,
semafor.com,
18 June 2026
About 25,000 gallons of crude oil spilled into the Los Angeles River on May 22 after construction crews damaged a 16-inch pipeline while drilling for a fiber optic line near Cesar Chavez and Eastern Avenues, according to AQMD.
—
Matthew Rodriguez,
CBS News,
18 June 2026
Khoukhi, a 35-year-old who has been in the Qatari national team program since 2013, scored the historic goal by drilling the header while leaping over a Swiss defender.
—
Chris Biderman,
Sacbee.com,
13 June 2026
Haji says their mine avoids these issues by drilling above the water level.
—
Ari Sen,
Scientific American,
13 June 2026
Storage would fill, drilling economics would worsen, and production cuts would follow.
—
Dan Eberhart,
Forbes.com,
12 June 2026
The process begins with a femtosecond laser cutting GaN dielets from a wafer and drilling precise cavities into the diamond substrate.
—
Atharva Gosavi,
Interesting Engineering,
8 June 2026
Verb
The goal scorer then took an artful first touch before drilling it home.
—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
26 June 2026
SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell told CNBC on June 12, when the company went public, that SpaceX planned to build pipelines and process its own propellant, and was looking into drilling its own natural gas.
—
Eric Berger,
ArsTechnica,
26 June 2026
The crisis was certainly good for oil companies, but the really booming corner of the business was trading, not drilling; European majors outshone their US competitors in first-quarter earnings because of their robust trading desks.
—
Tim McDonnell,
semafor.com,
18 June 2026
About 25,000 gallons of crude oil spilled into the Los Angeles River on May 22 after construction crews damaged a 16-inch pipeline while drilling for a fiber optic line near Cesar Chavez and Eastern Avenues, according to AQMD.
—
Matthew Rodriguez,
CBS News,
18 June 2026
Khoukhi, a 35-year-old who has been in the Qatari national team program since 2013, scored the historic goal by drilling the header while leaping over a Swiss defender.
—
Chris Biderman,
Sacbee.com,
13 June 2026
Haji says their mine avoids these issues by drilling above the water level.
—
Ari Sen,
Scientific American,
13 June 2026
Storage would fill, drilling economics would worsen, and production cuts would follow.
—
Dan Eberhart,
Forbes.com,
12 June 2026
The process begins with a femtosecond laser cutting GaN dielets from a wafer and drilling precise cavities into the diamond substrate.
—
Atharva Gosavi,
Interesting Engineering,
8 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for drilling
Verb
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On the other hand, however, take a step back and the world-building is jaw-dropping; on a big screen, Rogue Trooper is almost overwhelming, and Barnard becomes an almost godlike presence by the end with his piercing white eyes (don’t worry, it’s explained).
-
If discovering tiny insect casings or sticky residue, this often indicates those insects with piercing and sucking mouthparts that slowly siphon sap from plants, depleting their ability to feed themselves through photosynthesis.
Verb
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Nearly seven years after a teenager was killed out front of a Miami Gardens gas station, police have arrested a man accused of shooting him.
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Payton and Martin could have escaped without shooting into the crowded street corner, the prosecutor argued.
Verb
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Instead, strive for a layered effect, planting low-growing flowers and foliage at the edge of the bed and the dahlias in the center.
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Also, aim to create year-round appeal by planting about a third to half evergreens with the rest deciduous shrubs and perennials.
Verb
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Cape Verde is not punching above its weight on heart.
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Court records reveal he was subsequently arrested for throwing a rock at people, and later for punching someone else.
Verb
-
How the technologies work A battery EV is charged by plugging into the electricity grid.
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The 29-year-old Barcelona star frequently dropped deeper into the back line and formed a back five when the Netherlands were out of possession, plugging gaps to allow the centre-backs to shuffle across to defend wide areas or have a free run when defending aerial balls into the box.
Verb
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Previous cloud-seeding controversies Cloud seeding is now at the center of the rise in weather‑control conspiracy narratives after disasters, such as the tragic Texas floods of 2025 that killed dozens of people, many of them children.
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European leaders fear pro-Russian groups are seeding AI chatbots with propaganda.
Verb
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Some data storage companies have seen even more eye-popping gains.
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Despite the rising beef prices, steakhouses are popping up like crazy across Fort Worth and Arlington.
Cite this Entry
“Drilling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/drilling. Accessed 28 Jun. 2026.
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