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
Relevance
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
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of gadabout
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
Adjective
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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gadabout
Verb
-
Under Dino Toppmoller, Uzun has evolved from Mario Gotze’s understudy last season into a roaming second striker within a direct, vertical system.—
Sukhman Singh,
New York Times,
17 Oct. 2025
-
Accompanied by a nonchalant guitar performance, dancer and choreographer Dong Jilan, donning a brown velvet dress and having the same long, wavy hair as Sanmao, woke up from a miniature dune and roamed around the set in a highly spiritual and ceremonial fashion.—
Denni Hu,
Footwear News,
17 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Sometimes, though, nomads fall in love with a new country and want to stay forever.—
Stacey Leasca,
Travel + Leisure,
10 Oct. 2025
-
These friends, all Amazigh (Berber) nomads, have embarked on a musical voyage to celebrate their roots and share the richness of their heritage with the world.—
Jake Richardson,
Mercury News,
22 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Cope White, a cheerful Texan raised by a peripatetic single mother, joined the Marines with his straight best friend.—
Bob Morris,
New Yorker,
13 Oct. 2025
-
While the life of a filmmaker is peripatetic at best, Iñárritu and his wife, with their two children out of the nest, are trying to decide where to live.—
Anne Thompson,
IndieWire,
3 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
From wandering rare palm forests to navigating ancient waterways and spotting hundreds of migrating bird species, outdoor enthusiasts have much to explore.—
Gabi De la Rosa,
Southern Living,
15 Oct. 2025
-
Sometimes, it was described as fantastical, depicting unrealistic and strange juxtapositions, as though the black people in his paintings had wandered into a genre or set of conditions totally discordant with what the viewer considered their actual reality.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
14 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Anyone will also be able to visit the center to get an eye exam or buy a new pair of eyeglasses or sunglasses at its retail store, according to Vandana Pathak, UHealth’s assistant vice president for ambulatory services.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
2 Oct. 2025
-
Plans call for a 200,000-square-foot medical office building with four floors above ground and a basement, hosting a cancer center, urgent care, an ambulatory surgery center and three floors of physician offices.—
Paul Sisson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
25 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
The State Department has four travel advisory levels to help travelers assess safety risks before visiting other countries.—
Ashley J. DiMella,
FOXNews.com,
17 Oct. 2025
-
The European Union, for example, just started rolling out a new Entry and Exit System (EES) in which travelers use biometric data to gain entry to 29 European countries.—
Michael Cappetta,
Travel + Leisure,
17 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
While drifting lower from late September record highs, the stock was still up nearly 35% year to date — outperforming the S & P 500′s 13% advance.—
Zev Fima,
CNBC,
14 Oct. 2025
-
According to a preliminary investigation, a passenger vehicle was traveling northbound in the third lane when, for an unknown reason, the driver drifted across the lanes.—
Caroline Neal,
Louisville Courier Journal,
14 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Stargazers hoping to catch a glimpse of C/2025 R2 (SWAN) should read our roundups of the best binoculars and telescopes for viewing the night sky, while those looking to image the wanderer should read our guide to imaging a solar system comet with a DSLR camera.—
Anthony Wood,
Space.com,
17 Oct. 2025
-
Already, some skywatchers have caught sight of these icy wanderers.—
Denise Chow,
NBC news,
10 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Gadabout.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gadabout. Accessed 19 Oct. 2025.
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