1
as in wrapping
to encircle or bind with or as if with a belt
trees girdled the campus, essentially hiding it from view wire girdling the bundle of firewood
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in circling
to travel completely around
an asteroid belt that girdles the inner planets of the solar system
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in surrounding
to form a circle around
the rings that famously girdle the planet Saturn
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Recent Examples of girdling
This encourages roots to migrate outwards rather than circling and eventually weakening the tree by girdling it.
—
Luke Miller, Better Homes & Gardens, 21 Sep. 2025
Luke Miller, Better Homes & Gardens, 21 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for girdling
Verb
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Avoid wrapping leftover cut limes in aluminum foil, which can react with the acidity in the fruit, causing an off flavor.—
Katie Rosenhouse,
Southern Living,
21 Sep. 2025
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Back in 2023, a video falsely claiming a Bushwick grocery store was the chain’s first NYC location sparked confusion and long lines, with crowds wrapping around the block to glimpse what turned out to be a very earnest City Fresh Market.—
Oren Peleg,
HollywoodReporter,
20 Sep. 2025
Verb
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We were stuck in a holding pattern, circling in Jordanian airspace near the border with Israel while awaiting the order to proceed.—
Ahmed Fouad Alkhatib,
The Atlantic,
23 Sep. 2025
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If roots are tangled and circling, cut 1 inch into the root mass at four equidistant places and at the bottom of the rootball.—
Luke Miller,
Better Homes & Gardens,
21 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Beyond his public accusations, Ray J has often tied the controversy surrounding his past with Kardashian to deeper personal harm.—
Preezy Brown,
VIBE.com,
25 Sep. 2025
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The area surrounding the cave is a forest of small hardwood trees and shrubs, researchers said.—
Irene Wright,
Miami Herald,
25 Sep. 2025
Verb
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In Galaxy 2, Mario can hop on his trusty dinosaur steed and leverage Yoshi's unique abilities while traversing the inventive planetoid stages.—
Jeffrey L. Wilson,
PC Magazine,
20 Sep. 2025
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Hornet’s downward slash is the primary means of parrying and lining up another attack or traversing over stretches of hazardous pits.—
Christopher Cruz,
Rolling Stone,
19 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The designs feature a star with water and green hills; a whale in water with a white bird underneath; and three turkey feathers encircling a chickadee.—
Chris Van Buskirk,
Boston Herald,
25 Sep. 2025
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In the image from 1984, Prow Knob is almost entirely surrounded by the Alsek Glacier, but by 1999, the glacier had retreated, encircling only half of the mountain.—
Jasmine Laws,
MSNBC Newsweek,
19 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Certification is a necessary precursor for allowing a vehicle to approach the orbiting laboratory.—
Eric Berger,
ArsTechnica,
25 Sep. 2025
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While most satellite internet services operate from single geostationary satellites orbiting Earth at about 22,236 miles, Starlink is a constellation of thousands of satellites that operate from a low-Earth orbit, about 341 miles up.—
Eric Lagatta,
AZCentral.com,
24 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Girdling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/girdling. Accessed 29 Sep. 2025.
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