gawping

verb

present participle of gawp, chiefly British
as in staring
to look long and hard in wonder or surprise tourists in London gawping at royalty

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of gawping In response, the women maneuvered their craft behind some brush, hiding from the soldiers gawping at them from the bank. — Literary Hub, 26 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gawping
  1. staring
  2. gawking
  3. gazing
Verb
  • Once there, staring at the devastation, there was no denying the reality of death.
    — Torie Bosch, STAT, 5 Sep. 2026
  • This, like Hamlet, is about staring death in the face and fulfilling a dream not thought impossible.
    — Pete Hammond, Deadline, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of staring
Verb
  • On most days the Jewel House in the Tower of London is packed with tourists gawking at the fabled British Crown Jewels.
    — Hadley Hall Meares, Vanity Fair, 17 Aug. 2026
  • Instead, the skin-frying Friday saw common flow of people going through, gawking at the large screens and a group of sailors allowing some passing by to do pull-ups from a bar.
    — Amethyst Martinez, USA Today, 3 July 2026
Definition of gawking
Verb
  • For example, some sculptures establish sight lines while gazing toward other sculptures—a bronze representation of the messenger god Mercury in the Carter Collection room stares beyond its space to the Bateman Mercury, ca.
    — George Baker, Artforum, 1 Sep. 2026
  • In photos shared by The Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust on Instagram, Parton is seen gazing down at Emma as a newborn while holding her in the hospital, as her parents happily watch on.
    — Escher Walcott, PEOPLE, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of gazing

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gawpers
gawping
gawps
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Cite this Entry

“Gawping.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gawping. Accessed 8 Sep. 2026.

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