as in amusing
providing amusement or enjoyment
a list of entertaining things to do on a snow day
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in regaling
to cause (someone) to pass the time agreeably occupied
entertain the kids while I go and prepare dinner
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in considering
to give serious and careful thought to
have you ever entertained the thought that you could be wrong?
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in having
to keep in one's mind or heart
I don't entertain the hope of ever getting a girl like that to go out with me
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 entertaining
Greg Beacham, Chicago Tribune, 15 Feb. 2026
Truthfully, racing in the rain was entertaining.
—Doug Turnbull, AJC.com, 15 Feb. 2026
Anantaajith Raghuraman, New York Times, 13 Feb. 2026
Oakland’s council has swung in a less activist-friendly political direction this past year, awarding robust police surveillance contracts and entertaining more aggressive policies around clearing homeless encampments.
—Shomik Mukherjee, Mercury News, 10 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for entertaining
Adjective
With this iteration, the league is hoping that national pride and novelty will lead to entertaining hoops — but injuries have taken a toll even before the ball is tipped.
—Greg Beacham, Chicago Tribune, 15 Feb. 2026
Truthfully, racing in the rain was entertaining.
—Doug Turnbull, AJC.com, 15 Feb. 2026
Verb
As The Athletic has explained, however, there are questions over how scalable Glasner’s approach is to a club such as Spurs, where there are greater expectations for entertaining attacking football.
—Anantaajith Raghuraman, New York Times, 13 Feb. 2026
Oakland’s council has swung in a less activist-friendly political direction this past year, awarding robust police surveillance contracts and entertaining more aggressive policies around clearing homeless encampments.
—Shomik Mukherjee, Mercury News, 10 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for entertaining
Recent Examples of Synonyms for entertaining
Adjective
-
Weekly, Weber and Finger have kept reliable and amusing tabs on the ever-expanding universe of Whos and dissected the increasingly jumbled celebrity hierarchy.—
Nicholas Quah,
Vulture,
13 Feb. 2026
-
In his gobsmacking third appearance in the franchise, Tommy continues to be the victim of, well, not just Jason Voorhees, but somewhat amusing coincidence as well.—
Alison Foreman,
IndieWire,
13 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Robbie is at her finest when regaling Charli XCX or Jessie Ware and her mom about her clubbing days.—
Fran Hoepfner,
Vulture,
12 Feb. 2026
-
His father, a veteran of World War II, was a burial vault salesman and would often take Fitzpatrick with him on business trips, regaling him with tales of the city.—
News Desk,
Artforum,
23 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
The question was about the student section’s harassment of former Spartan Xavier Booker, which seemed like a legitimate query considering Booker had a terrible game.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
19 Feb. 2026
-
From an outside lens, Norway’s lack of hockey success doesn’t make much sense, especially considering its status in other winter sports.—
Peter Baugh,
New York Times,
19 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
There were noticeable knock-on effects of having so few fixtures.—
Andy Mitten,
New York Times,
20 Feb. 2026
-
Once chewed up by the machine of expectation and found guilty of the eternal athletic sin of having too much talent too soon, Liu has since learned how to spit back rather than be spit out.—
Dana O’Neil,
CNN Money,
20 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Dance teacher John Downing will teach Line Dance basics at this fun event.—
Ut Community Press,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
18 Feb. 2026
-
This quiz invites you to explore that legacy in a way that's both fun and surprisingly revealing.—
Kenna Hughes-Castleberry,
Space.com,
17 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The union is actively in talks with city staff as of Thursday and is debating a recent offer.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
19 Feb. 2026
-
The announcement was made Wednesday at the AI Impact Summit in New Delhi, where leading tech executives, government officials and AI researchers are debating how to use AI to solve real-world problems.—
Hanna Ziady,
CNN Money,
18 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Detroit entered the post-All-Star meeting holding a 2-0 lead in the three-game season series, which meant the Pistons owned the tiebreaker regardless of the outcome at The Garden on Thursday.—
Kristian Winfield,
New York Daily News,
20 Feb. 2026
-
Many people feel better holding a large cash cushion, especially after periods of volatility.—
Joanna Rotenberg,
Fortune,
20 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
With a creamy sauce and tender, silky onions, everything about this dish is enjoyable—including the fact it's made in one pan for easy clean-up.—
Cameron Beall,
Southern Living,
20 Feb. 2026
-
These popular items aim to make life with pets easier, cleaner, and more enjoyable.—
Kasey Caminiti,
USA Today,
20 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Entertaining.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/entertaining. Accessed 24 Feb. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
