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
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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
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of ducking
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
Emlyn Travis, Entertainment Weekly, 7 Oct. 2025
Jasper and Michelle looked for Josie, screaming her name, ducking behind cars to avoid gunfire.
—Georgea Kovanis, Freep.com, 1 Oct. 2025
Everyone’s ducking and dodging these days, too.
—IEEE Spectrum, 30 Sep. 2025
The video shows agents ducking for cover in front of two white vans while quickly shuffling detainees inside the facility, where an ICE agent frantically guided the detainees down a hallway.
—Peter D'abrosca , Brooke Taylor, FOXNews.com, 26 Sep. 2025
The surveillance video shows officers and detainees ducking for cover near two vans in the facility's sallyport.
—Luke Barr, ABC News, 25 Sep. 2025
Created in 2006 by the British artist Jason deCaires Taylor, the haunting life-size figures, including a man typing at a desk (entitled The Lost Correspondent), fishermen, market traders, and a ring of children holding hands, can be viewed by snorkelers and divers ducking beneath the bay’s surface.
—The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 19 Sep. 2025
The third shot was when everybody started ducking low and all these shots were like slow, until the fourth shot.
—Shimon Prokupecz, CNN Money, 29 Aug. 2025
The video, also obtained by NBC News, WBRC and CNN, shows children dressed in their school uniforms ducking and running out of the building.
—Bethany Brown, People.com, 28 Aug. 2025
Noun
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
While on The Tonight Show, Swift appeared shy when discussing the song’s lyrics, ducking her head down as the house band the Roots began playing a sensual tune.
—Emlyn Travis, Entertainment Weekly, 7 Oct. 2025
Jasper and Michelle looked for Josie, screaming her name, ducking behind cars to avoid gunfire.
—Georgea Kovanis, Freep.com, 1 Oct. 2025
Everyone’s ducking and dodging these days, too.
—IEEE Spectrum, 30 Sep. 2025
The video shows agents ducking for cover in front of two white vans while quickly shuffling detainees inside the facility, where an ICE agent frantically guided the detainees down a hallway.
—Peter D'abrosca , Brooke Taylor, FOXNews.com, 26 Sep. 2025
The surveillance video shows officers and detainees ducking for cover near two vans in the facility's sallyport.
—Luke Barr, ABC News, 25 Sep. 2025
Created in 2006 by the British artist Jason deCaires Taylor, the haunting life-size figures, including a man typing at a desk (entitled The Lost Correspondent), fishermen, market traders, and a ring of children holding hands, can be viewed by snorkelers and divers ducking beneath the bay’s surface.
—The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 19 Sep. 2025
The third shot was when everybody started ducking low and all these shots were like slow, until the fourth shot.
—Shimon Prokupecz, CNN Money, 29 Aug. 2025
The video, also obtained by NBC News, WBRC and CNN, shows children dressed in their school uniforms ducking and running out of the building.
—Bethany Brown, People.com, 28 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ducking
Noun
-
The Broncos closed his escape routes, too, limiting his impact as a scrambler.—
Nick Kosmider,
New York Times,
12 Oct. 2025
-
Easily accessible via Amtrak’s Northeast Regional line, Roanoke may be the perfect destination for a car-free weekend escape to the mountains.—
Erin Gifford,
Southern Living,
11 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
On Translation Eli Rallo writes about avoiding the OB-GYN, OCD obsessions, and pretending to be okay.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
15 Oct. 2025
-
My priority is to keep Forest Hills financially strong and efficient by managing resources wisely and avoiding unnecessary spending.—
Grace Tucker,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
15 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
While critical local and Indigenous knowledge is recognized in the report, it is largely excluded from assessments, both because weaving it with conventional scientific analysis is difficult or because communities may choose to protect certain knowledge.—
Jessica Beaudette,
The Conversation,
11 Oct. 2025
-
This invisible, climate-polluting gas can escape into the water through fissures in the sea floor, often revealing itself with a stream of bubbles weaving their way up to the ocean surface.—
Laura Paddison,
CNN Money,
10 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
But along with Sinatra and Martin, the company has also been dipping deeper into the past, striking a deal with the Nat King Cole estate.—
Jon Blistein,
Rolling Stone,
15 Oct. 2025
-
Within a matter of months of each other, both Apple and Amazon were reported to be dipping their toes into theatrical releases.—
Brian Welk,
IndieWire,
13 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
However, the court would not expand the receivership to take over any future LLCs the Verrichias might form ― at least not yet, although the court indicated a willingness to revisit the issue should the Verrichias dodging of their creditor continue.—
Jay Adkisson,
Forbes.com,
29 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
The report concluded that mirror cells could become a reality in the next 10 to 30 years and detailed the potentially devasting consequences if mirror bacteria were released into an environment and spread, evading natural biological controls and acting as dangerous pathogens.—
Katie Hunt,
CNN Money,
17 Oct. 2025
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The film follows a Cuban socialite, an English schoolteacher, and an Irish Catholic priest in Miami who spearhead a daring operation to help more than 14,000 children escape communist indoctrination and begin new lives in America — evading Castro’s secret police at every turn.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
15 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Fancy a few nights by the water after immersing yourself in the hectic pace of Venice proper?—
Liam Hess,
Vogue,
13 Oct. 2025
-
Buford spent years immersing himself in the world of British hooligan soccer syndicates.—
Ed Lavandera,
CNN Money,
11 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Crews of 10 Su-30SM2 multipurpose fighters and Su-24M tactical front-line bombers from the fleet took part in the exercise, which involved bombing targets while traveling at more than 620 miles per hour, the official Tass news agency said, and practicing the evasion of aircraft and air defenses.—
Shane Croucher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Oct. 2025
-
Then, a month later, he was indicted by a federal grand jury on 19 counts of fraud and tax evasion.—
Todd Spangler,
Freep.com,
7 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Ducking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ducking. Accessed 19 Oct. 2025.
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