Synonyms of flying

flying 1 of 3

adjective

ˈflī-iŋ 

1

as in rushed

acting or done with excessive or careless speed

a flying attempt at finishing the work

Synonyms & Similar Words

• rushed
• hurried
• headlong
• impulsive
• rash
• reckless
• sudden
• makeshift
• drive-by
• precipitate
• hasty
• cursory
• precipitous
• swift
• rapid
• gadarene
• pell-mell
• quick
• spontaneous
• helter-skelter
• rush
• overhasty
• breathtaking
• impatient
• impromptu
• abrupt
• impetuous
• horseback
• speedy
• madcap
• breakneck
• snap
• hotheaded
• headstrong
• heady
• spur-of-the-moment
• slapdash
• unadvised
• offhand
• off-the-cuff
• offhanded

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• deliberate
• calculated
• unhurried
• calculating
• measured
• prolonged
• extended
• circumspect
• long-term
• unrushed
• foresighted
• tentative
• faltering
• slow
• leisurely
• hesitant
• hesitating
• forethoughtful
• dallying
• poky
• laggard
• drawn-out
• dawdling
• shilly-shallying

2

as in rapid

moving, proceeding, or acting with great speed

that car was flying as it careened down the streets

Synonyms & Similar Words

• rapid
• galloping
• fast
• quick
• brisk
• rattling
• lightning
• splitting
• swift
• whirlwind
• fleet
• blistering
• speedy
• hot
• rapid-fire
• breathless
• hurried
• dizzy
• zippy
• hasty
• accelerated
• at speed
• breakneck
• nippy
• rushed
• fleet-footed
• snappy
• ready
• expeditious
• rush
• high-speed
• breathtaking
• strong
• prompt
• vigorous
• energetic
• quickened
• hastened
• strenuous
• ultrafast
• ultrarapid

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• crawling
• slow
• dragging
• lingering
• sluggish
• plodding
• leisurely
• unhurried
• deliberate
• languid
• poky
• dallying
• laggard
• poking
• measured
• late
• dillydallying
• tardy
• dawdling
• dilatory
• slowish
• ultraslow

flying

2 of 3

noun

as in flight

travel through the air by the use of wings

had never had the slightest fear of flying

Synonyms & Similar Words

• flight
• aviation
• gliding
• soaring
• aeronautics
• ballooning
• skydiving
• paragliding
• hang gliding

flying

3 of 3

verb

present participle of fly

1

as in hovering

to move through the air with or as if with outstretched wings

the Wright brothers realized mankind's age-old wish to fly

Synonyms & Similar Words

• hovering
• gliding
• floating
• soaring
• sailing
• winging
• drifting
• fluttering
• planing
• darting
• aviating
• wafting
• flitting
• hanging
• sweeping
• cruising
• coasting
• orbiting
• diving
• rocketing
• stooping
• catapulting
• helicoptering
• jetting

2

as in escaping

to get free from a dangerous or confining situation

you must fly to safety immediately

Synonyms & Similar Words

• escaping
• fleeing
• leaving
• moving
• running away
• getting out
• absconding
• running off
• breaking free
• breaking out (of)
• avoiding
• going
• clearing out
• exiting
• losing
• departing
• lamming
• evading
• eluding
• shunning
• pulling out
• eloping
• walking out
• rescuing
• quitting
• taking off
• shoving (off)
• springing
• liberating
• extricating
• releasing
• decamping
• disentangling
• freeing
• loosing
• loosening
• emancipating
• sallying (forth)
• redeeming
• enfranchising
• bringing off
• manumitting
• unfettering
• unchaining
• unbinding
• uncaging

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• remaining
• staying
• lingering
• hanging around
• dwelling
• returning
• abiding
• sticking around
• coming back
• tarrying

3

as in traveling

to proceed or move quickly

flew down the concourse to catch his flight

Synonyms & Similar Words

• traveling
• driving
• racing
• speeding
• rushing
• scurrying
• hurrying
• trotting
• zipping
• jumping
• chasing
• buzzing
• running
• scooting
• blowing
• darting
• stepping
• dashing
• blasting
• zooming
• scuttling
• tearing
• whirling
• ripping
• shooting
• ramming
• bowling
• hurling
• blazing
• hurtling
• bolting
• rocketing
• jogging
• hustling
• motoring
• careering
• jetting
• careening
• whisking
• barreling
• humping
• rustling
• breezing
• haring
• pelting
• bustling
• galloping
• coursing
• cracking (on)
• hastening
• bombing
• bundling
• belting
• nipping
• cannonballing
• flitting
• hying
• beating it
• highballing
• whizzing
• scudding
• stepping on it
• getting a move on
• scampering
• making tracks
• sprinting
• shaking a leg
• streaking
• hotfooting (it)
• scuffling
• accelerating
• stampeding
• beetling
• overtaking
• outrunning
• stepping out
• quickening
• outpacing
• outstripping
• catching up
• beelining
• arrowing
• fast-forwarding

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• crawling
• creeping
• poking
• dragging
• lingering
• hanging (around or out)
• poking
• lagging
• loitering
• strolling
• dawdling
• shuffling
• sauntering
• ambling
• dallying
• lumbering
• plodding
• decelerating
• tarrying
• slowing (down or up)
• dillydallying

4

as in fleeing

to hasten away from something dangerous or frightening

no one in the movies ever thinks to fly from the ax murderer and immediately call the police

Synonyms & Similar Words

• fleeing
• retreating
• bolting
• running
• escaping
• breaking
• skedaddling
• running away
• running off
• beating a retreat
• beating it
• turning tail
• bugging out
• making tracks
• hightailing (it)
• scramming
• getting (away)
• eloping
• absconding
• getting out
• decamping
• making off
• skipping (out)
• clearing out
• lighting out
• scarpering
• lamming
• scatting
• skirring
• mizzling

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• confronting
• facing
• daring
• defying
• braving
• remaining
• staying
• lingering
• hanging around
• dwelling
• bearding
• abiding
• sticking around
• tarrying

5

as in disappearing

to cease to be visible

the morning mist had flown, and a sparkling sea lay before us

Synonyms & Similar Words

• disappearing
• vanishing
• fading
• melting
• fleeing
• evaporating
• sinking
• dissolving
• dissipating
• dropping out of sight
• dispersing
• dematerializing
• blurring
• evanescing
• dying (away or down or out)
• clearing
• drying up
• blanking (out)
• dimming

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• appearing
• arriving
• emerging
• issuing
• coming out
• looming
• materializing
• showing up
• breaking out

6

as in working

to withstand scrutiny and gain acceptance or approval

the familiar "Because I said so!" is a reason that won't fly with most teenagers

Synonyms & Similar Words

• working
• passing
• playing
• washing
• standing up
• taking
• holding water
• holding up
• passing muster
• going over
• going down
• getting through
• going through

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of flying

Adjective

At that point the lines painted on the asphalt turn from cages into features of the landscape among many others, and the mysterious flying object ceases to be easily recognizable. — Literary Hub, 19 Feb. 2026

Chang'e 7 features an orbiter, a lander, a rover and a mini-flying probe or hopper, which together will tote to the moon a total of 18 scientific instruments. — Leonard David, Space.com, 6 Jan. 2026

Noun

How to Get There Getting to Vero Beach is relatively straightforward, and flying is often the fastest option for travelers. — Lauren Dana Ellman, Travel + Leisure, 3 July 2026

Bunn says that fear of flying can be overcome through educational tools and counseling, and is a matter of resetting the way your brain views the experience. — Katie Riley, Southern Living, 1 July 2026

Verb

In India, Micato has been known to arrange private viewings of embroidery workshops, even flying local Kashmiri craftsmen (famous for their embroidery work) to Delhi to demonstrate live for guests. — Ashlea Halpern, Condé Nast Traveler, 3 Aug. 2026

Sooty terns spend years at sea, flying thousands of miles before coming back to land to breed. — NPR, 3 Aug. 2026