DRILLING Synonyms: 80 Similar and Opposite Words

drilling 1 of 2

verb (1)

Definition of drilling

present participle of drill

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

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in shooting

to strike with a missile from a gun drilled the target from 100 yards away

Synonyms & Similar Words

drilling

2 of 2

verb (2)

present participle of drill

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

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 drilling

Verb

Naturally, the privilege of drilling your marketing messages into the skulls of TV’s last great mass audience comes at a price. — Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 9 Sep. 2026 The company constantly collects data to optimize its operation, since longer drilling times translate to higher costs. — Pippa Stevens, CNBC, 5 Sep. 2026 This isn’t Chicago’s first time drilling eight or more home runs in a single game. — Johnny Flores Jr, New York Times, 1 Sep. 2026 Options considered during the analysis included drilling holes in the existing piles and adding more steel inside, or widening the pile caps so more piles could be added on the outside. — David Garrick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 26 Aug. 2026 Still, the Center for Biological Diversity last week filed an emergency petition with the New Mexico Supreme Court, challenging the state’s approval of well drilling to supply millions of gallons of water for Project Jupiter’s construction. — Will Weissert, Fortune, 26 Aug. 2026 By the end of last year, 93 projects such as drilling 218 wells, building 144 classrooms and funding 109 women’s clubs were completed as part of the program. — Jennifer Bringle, Footwear News, 24 Aug. 2026 The result was the equivalent of an X-ray of the subsurface extending roughly 300 feet underground, without drilling a single hole. — Nolan Roth, Scientific American, 23 Aug. 2026 Mapping minerals before drilling The Colorado demonstration is also tied to a broader push to use quantum sensing for domestic mineral mapping. — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 20 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for drilling

Verb

But, even more specifically, the story is in dialogue with the British artist David Austen’s minimal and piercing drawings.

— Cressida Leyshon, New Yorker, 6 Sep. 2026
Possible options include ammunition designed for varied levels of impact, including armor-piercing configurations.

— Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 4 Sep. 2026

Definition of piercing

Verb

Oil has moved firmly above $100 a barrel, diesel is at a record, and gas prices are shooting higher again.

— David Goldman, CNN Money, 11 Sep. 2026
The heightened presence combined with the absence of street lights on multiple blocks throughout the neighborhood − including the one where both shooting incidents occurred − has left Taylor on edge.

— April Quevedo, jsonline.com, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of shooting

Verb

Stanley is accused of blocking Rajabi’s car with his body, punching Rajabi’s window and resisting arrest.

— Charlotte Observer, Charlotte Observer, 2 Sep. 2026
An Arkansas State Police trooper was captured on dashcam footage yanking the passenger of a vehicle by his hair and punching him in the face after a high-speed chase that ended in the streets of Blytheville.

— Daniel McFadin, Arkansas Online, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of punching

Verb

This isn’t as simple as plugging a player into the lineup in Madden NFL 27.

— Antwan Staley, New York Daily News, 25 Aug. 2026
The attack relies on plugging the device, which costs less than $100, into a port hidden by a hatch on the exterior of the plane, which the researchers say is easily within reach of maintenance workers and airline staff.

— Frank Landymore, Futurism, 13 Aug. 2026

Definition of plugging

Verb

In a move away from the traditional group stages, the league phase is designed to be fair through a seeding system.

— Leon Imber, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2026
This is an important game for City Section playoff seeding purposes and also provides more evidence which of these teams will compete for a league title.

— Eric Sondheimer, Los Angeles Times, 7 Sep. 2026

Definition of seeding

Verb

But Suzuki’s two-footedness meant he was relaxed in playing between them, popping passes into the spare player in midfield.

— Aston Villa, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026
The eye-popping financial and human costs of post-9/11 security have obscured other consequences.

— Michael E. Neagle, Hartford Courant, 8 Sep. 2026

Definition of popping

Browse Nearby Words

drillers

drilling

drillmaster

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Style

“Drilling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/drilling. Accessed 16 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of drilling

verb (1)

verb (2)

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