1,400 new words in our dictionary! — Parasocial, glow-up, promposal & more
1,400 new words in our dictionary! — More

expostulating

verb

present participle of expostulate
as in objecting
to present an opposing opinion or argument the concerned parents tried to expostulate with their daughter when she announced her intention to live on her own in New York City

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for expostulating
  1. objecting
  2. protesting
  3. complaining
Verb
  • Since hitting the internet, the ad has triggered a negative reaction among those objecting to its sexualization of women in sports.
    — Todd Spangler, Variety, 14 Sep. 2026
  • One group of objecting healthcare providers already has won a narrow reprieve.
    — The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 11 Sep. 2026
Definition of objecting
Verb
  • Controversy came—from members of the cosmopolitan Black art scene, who had been protesting modern art museums like the Whitney for not exhibiting more work by Black artists.
    — Doreen St. Félix, New Yorker, 5 Sep. 2026
  • One week later, it was confirmed that the Biennale had reinstated the pavilion as the Taiwan Pavilion, the designation the Chinese delegation is now protesting.
    — News Desk, Artforum, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of protesting
Verb
  • Put another way—and this is evidently how Gray saw it—Kanarek was always complaining.
    — Ian Parker, New Yorker, 14 Sep. 2026
  • Piles of unopened mail, losing track of cash or checks and complaining about not having enough money are indicators that elders may need someone to take over their finances, according to the Elder Care Alliance.
    — Alexiah Syrai Olsen, Sacbee.com, 11 Sep. 2026
Definition of complaining
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.

Browse Nearby Words

expostulates
expostulating
expostulation
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Expostulating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/expostulating. Accessed 17 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of watershed

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Words from the 'Odyssey'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
funny guinea pig in glasses reading a book
Challenging Words You Should Know Vol 2 Words to the wise
See All