earning

verb

present participle of earn
1
as in winning
to receive as return for effort during my teen years I earned pocket money by mowing lawns

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in deserving
to be or make worthy of (as a reward or punishment) you've earned the afternoon off after all that hard work

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 earning Pete Fairbanks, the Marlins' fifth pitcher, threw just seven pitches while earning his 16th save with a perfect ninth. — CBS News, 1 Aug. 2026 Those included earning her master’s degree from the University of Missouri. — Kansas City Star, 31 July 2026 Here, members of Forbes Agency Council share advice on adapting content for AI search experiences, from structuring pages so machines can parse them to earning the kind of third-party validation AI trusts more than a brand's own claims. — Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 31 July 2026 Pete Fairbanks, the Marlins’ fifth pitcher, threw just seven pitches while earning his 16th save with a perfect ninth. — ABC News, 31 July 2026 That season, Samuel had 77 receptions for 1,405 yards and six touchdowns, plus 59 carries for 365 yards and eight touchdowns on the ground, earning first-team All-Pro and Pro Bowl honors. — Matt Barrows, New York Times, 31 July 2026 The Newsoms reported earning about $341,000 to $417,000 in state wages between 2021 and 2024, mainly from Newsom’s gubernatorial salary. — Lia Russell, Sacbee.com, 31 July 2026 The Social Security Administration takes your highest-earning 35 years of work and calculates your average monthly earnings from those years, adjusted upward for subsequent growth in average wages. — Marc Novicoff, The Atlantic, 24 July 2026 As income increases, the amount of matches goes down, phasing out for single filers earning between $20,500 and $35,500 ($41,000 to $71,000 for those filing jointly). — Becca Stanek, TheWeek, 24 July 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for earning
  1. winning
  2. deserving
  3. gaining
  4. garnering
  5. reaping
  6. making
  7. obtaining
  8. getting
Verb
  • Baresi is regarded as an AC Milan icon, having spent his entire 20-year career with the club, winning six Serie A titles and three top European trophies, and captaining the team for 15 seasons before retiring in 1997.
    — CNN Money, CNN Money, 31 July 2026
  • The Padres saw their five-game winning streak snapped and dropped two games behind the final NL wild-card spot.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 31 July 2026
Definition of winning
Verb
  • Also deserving credit was the combination of Ryan Yarbrough, Paul Blackburn and Brent Headrick, who blanked one of baseball’s best offenses a few hours after the Dodgers scored eight runs in the first game of Sunday’s doubleheader.
    — Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 20 July 2026
  • The Curaçao goalkeeper, Eloy Room, made no fewer than fifteen saves, and one hopes that his post-match joke about deserving a statue will be suitably honored in stone.
    — Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 17 July 2026
Definition of deserving
Verb
  • The oil market has been volatile over the course of the war, gaining 9% or more over six single-day or multi-day stretches since the beginning of March.
    — David Goldman, CNN Money, 3 Aug. 2026
  • That simplicity may be one reason rucking is gaining attention.
    — Jeff Fromm, Forbes.com, 1 Aug. 2026
Definition of gaining
Verb
  • Philippine officials credit the transparency strategy with garnering international support for the Philippines and strengthening its military alliances.
    — Jill Goldenziel, Forbes.com, 30 July 2026
  • The case split Democratic Party heavyweights, with Tapp-Harper garnering the support of Mayor Brandon Scott.
    — Mike Hellgren, CBS News, 30 July 2026
Definition of garnering
Verb
  • As the Wall Street Journal reports, British fossil fuel giant Shell is reaping enormous profits thanks to spiking oil prices triggered by the conflict in Iran.
    — Victor Tangermann, Futurism, 30 July 2026
  • That kind of deal had been the standard procedure in recent years, with teams paying players big money early and reaping the benefits of those extra prime years before a third deal comes around.
    — Max Bultman, New York Times, 30 July 2026
Definition of reaping
Verb
  • Mint Julep Experiences has built its business around making those trips easy, and the new Buffalo Bus gives travelers a straightforward way to visit one of Kentucky's most famous distilleries without having to worry about logistics.
    — Emily Price, Forbes.com, 30 July 2026
  • People making folk music around the world have a nonprofit based in Kansas City to thank for improving their odds of scoring a Grammy Award next year.
    — Lisa Gutierrez, Kansas City Star, 30 July 2026
Definition of making
Verb
  • China's effort lasted several years, the administration official said, with China obtaining tens of millions of files from 18 states in 2020 and 220 million files by 2023.
    — Jennifer Jacobs, CBS News, 30 July 2026
  • Some addicts learned to game the system by obtaining daily allotments of hydromorphone pills—15 or more a day was typical—and then selling them to dealers in exchange for stronger fentanyl concoctions.
    — Michael Powell, The Atlantic, 30 July 2026
Definition of obtaining
Verb
  • The Los Angeles Dodgers have acquired the biggest prize on the trade deadline market, getting two-time reigning AL Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal from the Detroit Tigers on Saturday night.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 2 Aug. 2026
  • That being said, SPORT explains that Real Madrid are optimistic about getting a deal over the line after agreeing personal terms with the player.
    — Tom Sanderson, Forbes.com, 1 Aug. 2026
Definition of getting

Browse Nearby Words

earnestness
earning
earnings
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Cite this Entry

“Earning.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/earning. Accessed 5 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on earning

Nglish: Translation of earning for Spanish Speakers

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