as in to roam
to move about from place to place aimlessly
he gads about town every Saturday, flirting and gossiping with various shopkeepers and locals
Synonyms & Similar Words
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as in nomad
a person who roams about without a fixed route or destination
she was a thoughtful gadabout, always picking up souvenirs for her friends from wherever her travels took her
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in peripatetic
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of gad (about)
Daniel Kreps, Rolling Stone, 16 Mar. 2023
For those of us who won’t be joining in the sybaritic excursion, Matches is bringing the Riviera gadabout vibes to all with capsule collections of women’s, men’s and home products curated by Sciò and Rabensteiner.
—Todd Plummer, Robb Report, 5 May 2022
But a linesman stepped in and prevented the gadabout angler from bringing in the catch.
—Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 27 Nov. 2021
Hardly the schedule of a social gadabout.
—New York Times, 5 Aug. 2021
The giggling gadabout who dies penniless.
—Cory Oldweiler, Star Tribune, 11 Dec. 2020
Writer, comedian, and social gadabout Lucas Murphy sits down with friends and contemporaries to solve the New York Times crossword puzzle.
—Savannah Eadens, The Courier-Journal, 20 Apr. 2020
So, a solar charging system fits perfectly with your gadabout persona.
—The Editors, Field & Stream, 10 Apr. 2020
Simon is so reserved that even his live-in girlfriend (an egregiously underused Olivia Thirlby) has given up on him; Trevor is a kooky gadabout who’d be right at home trading druggy celebrity anecdotes with Oliver Putnam.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Noun
The wild career of David Johansen — New York Dolls frontman, punk gadabout, occasional actor, and Buster Poindexter portrayer — will be the focus of an upcoming documentary co-directed by Martin Scorsese.
—Daniel Kreps, Rolling Stone, 16 Mar. 2023
For those of us who won’t be joining in the sybaritic excursion, Matches is bringing the Riviera gadabout vibes to all with capsule collections of women’s, men’s and home products curated by Sciò and Rabensteiner.
—Todd Plummer, Robb Report, 5 May 2022
But a linesman stepped in and prevented the gadabout angler from bringing in the catch.
—Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 27 Nov. 2021
Hardly the schedule of a social gadabout.
—New York Times, 5 Aug. 2021
The giggling gadabout who dies penniless.
—Cory Oldweiler, Star Tribune, 11 Dec. 2020
Writer, comedian, and social gadabout Lucas Murphy sits down with friends and contemporaries to solve the New York Times crossword puzzle.
—Savannah Eadens, The Courier-Journal, 20 Apr. 2020
So, a solar charging system fits perfectly with your gadabout persona.
—The Editors, Field & Stream, 10 Apr. 2020
Simon is so reserved that even his live-in girlfriend (an egregiously underused Olivia Thirlby) has given up on him; Trevor is a kooky gadabout who’d be right at home trading druggy celebrity anecdotes with Oliver Putnam.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gad (about)
Verb
-
The employees of Rockin’ Grandma’s roam the grounds of the retreat site, which boasts multiple structures, and are visited by a series of guest speakers whose lectures range from the merely dull to the truly Dada.—
Inkoo Kang,
New Yorker,
27 Mar. 2026
-
It's estimated 60 million bison once roamed North America, but they were nearly driven to extinction in the 1800s, and by 1889, there were only a few hundred wild bison remained.—
Madeline Bartos,
CBS News,
26 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Jargalsaikhan Bayarkhand's winning entry from Mongolia is a striking portrait of a Kazakh nomad in traditional attire and the country's sparse landscape framing him.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
21 Mar. 2026
-
Increasingly erratic precipitation since the 1980s has forced many nomads to come in from the desert.—
Kevin West,
Travel + Leisure,
10 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Empower has also advised veteran former Manchester United and Portugal midfielder Nani throughout a career that has included spells in the United States, Australia, Italy, Turkey and a return to his homeland in its peripatetic latter years.—
Greg O'Keeffe,
New York Times,
1 Feb. 2026
-
The peripatetic singer-songwriter’s eponymous third album is a document of wandering and longing.—
Marissa Lorusso,
Pitchfork,
26 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The bohemian Užupis district feels like a film set in its own right, and wandering through the cobblestoned streets with kids is the kind of immersive, screen-free adventure that sticks with a family long after the suitcases are unpacked.—
Lauren Schuster,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
23 Mar. 2026
-
German Jews—my people—were far less numerous, most of them came to the United States earlier, and their typical first occupation was peddling, which entailed wandering through non-Jewish areas, not living in tenements.—
Adam Kirsch,
The Atlantic,
23 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
The State Department also warned travelers to prepare for potential disruptions, including periodic airspace closures that could affect international flights.—
Christopher Cann,
USA Today,
25 Mar. 2026
-
The stoppage has caused staffing shortages among TSA workers at airport security checkpoints, resulting in significantly longer-than-normal delays for travelers, with some airports reporting wait times of over four hours.—
Washington Examiner Staff,
The Washington Examiner,
25 Mar. 2026
Adjective
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Tenet Health also owns ambulatory surgery centers, urgent care centers and imaging centers across Florida, including Miami-Dade and Broward counties.—
Michelle Marchante,
Miami Herald,
10 Mar. 2026
-
Yelenda was slightly lethargic, had a right sided head tilt and was non-ambulatory.—
Staff Report,
Hartford Courant,
27 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Voice like a warm porchlight left on for wanderers who kissed goodbye too soon or stayed too long.—
Alex Suskind,
Pitchfork,
18 Mar. 2026
-
Unlike most comets, which originate in the Kuiper Belt or the Oort Cloud, this icy wanderer formed around another star before drifting into our cosmic neighborhood.—
Daisy Dobrijevic,
Space.com,
2 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Later, settle in for a pint at Teach Ósta, the lone pub, where conversations drift easily from myth to weather to memory.—
Condé Nast Traveler,
Condé Nast Traveler,
25 Mar. 2026
-
There is something timeless about staring at only water and sky, easy to drift back to 1914 when this building was designed by the New York architecture firm McKim Mead & White.—
Rick Kogan,
Chicago Tribune,
25 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Gad (about).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gad%20%28about%29. Accessed 27 Mar. 2026.
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