as in escape
the act or a means of getting or keeping away from something undesirable
the disgraceful ducking of your duties to your family
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in avoiding
to get or keep away from (as a responsibility) through cleverness or trickery
don't try to duck your commitment to spending Thanksgiving with your family by claiming you have to work
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
3
as in dipping
to sink or push (something) briefly into or as if into a liquid
ducked the new camper in the lake as a joke
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 ducking
PC Magazine, 15 Nov. 2025
In true TikTok style, however, the song gets a comedic twist in the goofy ducking-out scenario.
—Leslie Katz, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2025
What's your take on this Jeep 'ducking' trend?
—Morgan Korn, ABC News, 10 Aug. 2025
Student leaders, administrators and co-principal Lorena Moreno formed a welcome tunnel near the gate, cheering as students entered — some ducking past the fanfare and others stopping for hugs and greetings.
—Hanna Kang, Oc Register, 6 Aug. 2025
Tom Ignudo, CBS News, 9 Apr. 2026
Investors ducking for cover in the rocky market are turning to low volatility funds.
—Michelle Fox, CNBC, 27 Mar. 2026
As the sun falls, Johnny Leach steps out of his Brooklyn apartment and onto the wet street before ducking into the subway station.
—Jenna Thompson
march 27, Kansas City Star, 27 Mar. 2026
Chicagoans are ducking for cover as delivery robots turn into heat-seeking missiles for innocent glass structures.
—Frank Landymore, Futurism, 26 Mar. 2026
Jared McCain, a trade deadline steal from the tax-ducking 76ers, knocked down two 3s in the last four minutes.
—Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 10 Mar. 2026
Selling Garland was less about his abilities as an individual contributor and less about ducking his no-move clause, which kicks in on July 1, and more about Vancouver leaning into leaguewide interest in Garland and cleaning up its books overall with an eye toward long-term planning.
—Thomas Drance, New York Times, 6 Mar. 2026
Post videos of catching them ducking in Statehouse hallways.
—Joe Battenfeld, Boston Herald, 5 Mar. 2026
On an episode of Mike Birbiglia’s Working It Out podcast from 2024, Birbiglia listens to Fleming tell a story about his childhood habit of perpetually running away from his mother, sprinting off into a rainstorm rather than pragmatically ducking into her car.
—Kathryn Vanarendonk, Vulture, 26 Feb. 2026
Noun
Automatic ducking doesn't add quacks to your soundtrack.
—PC Magazine, 15 Nov. 2025
In true TikTok style, however, the song gets a comedic twist in the goofy ducking-out scenario.
—Leslie Katz, Forbes.com, 13 Aug. 2025
What's your take on this Jeep 'ducking' trend?
—Morgan Korn, ABC News, 10 Aug. 2025
Student leaders, administrators and co-principal Lorena Moreno formed a welcome tunnel near the gate, cheering as students entered — some ducking past the fanfare and others stopping for hugs and greetings.
—Hanna Kang, Oc Register, 6 Aug. 2025
Verb
Ring surveillance video from the night of the shooting showed people ducking for cover on the 1500 block of South Etting Street as gunshots were fired.
—Tom Ignudo, CBS News, 9 Apr. 2026
Investors ducking for cover in the rocky market are turning to low volatility funds.
—Michelle Fox, CNBC, 27 Mar. 2026
As the sun falls, Johnny Leach steps out of his Brooklyn apartment and onto the wet street before ducking into the subway station.
—Jenna Thompson
march 27, Kansas City Star, 27 Mar. 2026
Chicagoans are ducking for cover as delivery robots turn into heat-seeking missiles for innocent glass structures.
—Frank Landymore, Futurism, 26 Mar. 2026
Jared McCain, a trade deadline steal from the tax-ducking 76ers, knocked down two 3s in the last four minutes.
—Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 10 Mar. 2026
Selling Garland was less about his abilities as an individual contributor and less about ducking his no-move clause, which kicks in on July 1, and more about Vancouver leaning into leaguewide interest in Garland and cleaning up its books overall with an eye toward long-term planning.
—Thomas Drance, New York Times, 6 Mar. 2026
Post videos of catching them ducking in Statehouse hallways.
—Joe Battenfeld, Boston Herald, 5 Mar. 2026
On an episode of Mike Birbiglia’s Working It Out podcast from 2024, Birbiglia listens to Fleming tell a story about his childhood habit of perpetually running away from his mother, sprinting off into a rainstorm rather than pragmatically ducking into her car.
—Kathryn Vanarendonk, Vulture, 26 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ducking
Noun
-
This escape, which borders Canada, spans over 218,000 acres with lakes, boreal forests, and trickling streams.—
Stephanie Vermillion,
Travel + Leisure,
11 Apr. 2026
-
Increase that field too much, and the electrons escape.—
Rupendra Brahambhatt,
Interesting Engineering,
11 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Whatever his flaws, the president has been politically astute throughout his tenure, carefully avoiding the trap of letting the perfect be the enemy of good.—
Kelly Sloan,
The Orlando Sentinel,
9 Apr. 2026
-
Be wary of phishing by avoiding links in unsolicited emails or texts.—
Larry Magid,
Mercury News,
9 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The poem tells the story of the seduction of a sixteen-year-old girl by the watermonster, a mythical figure, weaving together themes of place, identity, trauma, and transformation.—
Patrick Dundon,
JSTOR Daily,
9 Apr. 2026
-
The mopeds and similar modes of transportation have become notorious in Boston, often weaving through traffic and lining up outside of popular takeout spots.—
Matt Schooley,
CBS News,
7 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Temperatures are expected to warm near 80 degrees on Monday, before dipping to the upper 60s on Tuesday.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
8 Apr. 2026
-
Artistic geniuses will continue dipping their toes in AI and fans shouldn’t expect easy answers.—
Christian Zilko,
IndieWire,
6 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Starter Seth Lugo pitched four strong innings, including artful dodging of traffic in the second, and the bullpen stranded seven Colombia base runners the rest of the way.—
Maria Torres,
New York Times,
7 Mar. 2026
-
Its defense minister last week reported some 200,000 troop desertions and draft-dodging by about 2 million Ukrainians.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
23 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The attack targets Russia’s shadow fleet evading international sanctions imposed over Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine and its ongoing oil export revenues.—
Samy Magdy,
Los Angeles Times,
7 Apr. 2026
-
The records also show Renfro is facing several other charges from previous cases, including assault causing bodily injury, assault causing bodily injury-family violence, evading arrest or detention, and continuous violence against the family.—
Doug Myers,
CBS News,
5 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Johansson scores his 200th On a tremendous play by Boldy to fend off Brandon Montour and spin for a backdoor pass, Johansson snapped an eight-game goal drought by slam-dunking his 200th goal.—
Michael Russo,
New York Times,
8 Apr. 2026
-
On the side, there’s a cup of mushroom stock fortified with soy sauce, molasses, rosemary and a touch of cayenne pepper for dunking.—
Jenn Harris,
Los Angeles Times,
2 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Former House Speaker Charlie Flaherty plead guilty in 1996 to felony tax evasion as well as violating the state conflict of interest law for taking free vacation housing from lobbyists.—
Boston Herald editorial staff,
Boston Herald,
10 Apr. 2026
-
The agency late last year also increased the number of citable violations from five — including fare evasion, eating or drinking onboard, smoking, or incorrectly using a discount ticket — to 25.—
Sacbee.com,
Sacbee.com,
7 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Ducking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ducking. Accessed 13 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
