fanning

verb

present participle of fan
1
as in igniting

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Dissimilar Words
2
as in oscillating

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Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for fanning
  1. igniting
  2. oscillating
  3. inflaming
  4. swaying
  5. triggering
  6. waving
  7. kindling
  8. flicking
Verb
  • The assailants used firearms and explosives, igniting the vehicle.
    — Widlore Mérancourt, Washington Post, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Juba, South SudanAP — A drone strike on a market in Abyei, a border region disputed by Sudan and South Sudan, hit a nearby fuel depot, killing at least 153 people and igniting a fire that was still burning Tuesday, a local official said.
    — CNN Money, CNN Money, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of igniting
Verb
  • Dreame’s newest smart fan, the futuristic MF10, provides wide-ranging airflow via two bladeless, independently oscillating wings.
    — Derek Rose, Time, 15 Oct. 2026
  • And, not only that, but the swing starts oscillating faster and faster.
    — Robert Lea, Space.com, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of oscillating
Verb
  • However, with the public already discontented over elevated living costs and deteriorating public services, such measures risk further inflaming social tensions.
    — , CNBC, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Anthropic updates its policies to bar users being cruel to Claude, inflaming a debate about whether the company’s concern for ‘model welfare’ is wise.
    — Jeremy Kahn, Fortune, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of inflaming
Verb
  • Fear is not simply a tool for swaying the uninformed, undecided voter.
    — Monique Mitchell Turner, The Conversation, 23 Oct. 2026
  • The specialists working on the mission had to ensure the drone could carry a human being without flipping over or swaying excessively, according to the unit.
    — Yuliya Talmazan, NBC news, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of swaying
Verb
  • In April 2025, former Commissioner Chris Measmer resigned to join the North Carolina Senate, triggering a contentious appointment process that resulted in a lawsuit and a judge blocking the board’s initial choice.
    — Charlotte Observer, Charlotte Observer, 3 Nov. 2026
  • Late Sunday, 15 waterways across northern Arizona and southwestern Colorado either reached or were forecast to reach major flood stage, triggering evacuations and washing out roads.
    — Washington Post, Washington Post, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of triggering
Verb
  • Watchstanders got a distress call just before noon from the good Samaritan, who told them that there was a vessel with smoke coming from it roughly five miles west of the beach, with a person waving their arms on board.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 2 Nov. 2026
  • Milwaukee fans in the crowd of 40,514, many waving yellow towels and some wearing cheeseheads, brought a Badger State feel to Tropicana Field.
    — Ronald Blum, Chicago Tribune, 28 Oct. 2026
Definition of waving
Verb
  • Anxiety over America’s build-out of data centers has reached Wall Street in recent days, kindling fears that the artificial intelligence boom is unsustainable.
    — Editorial Board, Washington Post, 23 Oct. 2026
  • This wildfire season was supercharged by heavy rains in January that spurred vegetation growth, which became kindling when the summer heat arrived.
    — Sam McNeil, Los Angeles Times, 24 Aug. 2026
Definition of kindling
Verb
  • Instamall plans to keep adding brands, but it is already hooked into the inventory systems of its existing partners, so expanding the service to new cities could be as easy as flicking a switch.
    — Evan Clark, Footwear News, 19 Oct. 2026
  • Coming for a variety of longtime critics of the merger, opposition rose and suspicion about the settlement served to pour gasoline on an already flicking fire.
    — Dominic Patten, Deadline, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of flicking
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

fannies
fanning
fanning (out)
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Cite this Entry

“Fanning.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/fanning. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

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