as in floating
to rest or move along the surface of a liquid or in the air
claimed that the UFO hovered a moment, then spun off into space at incredible speed
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of hovering
Bryan Mena, CNN Money, 27 Jan. 2026
Clouds are expected to build again Wednesday, with highs near 21 and wind chills hovering around zero, followed by a partly cloudy and cold night with lows near 9.
—Baltimore Sun Staff, Baltimore Sun, 27 Jan. 2026
North Texas awoke to temperatures hovering around 15 degrees Monday as cold air blanketed the region for a third day and Dallas-Fort Worth hit a record for snowfall.
—Dallas Morning News, 26 Jan. 2026
At that time, the windchill was hovering at 1 degree below zero.
—Lauren Penington, Denver Post, 26 Jan. 2026
Videos show an officer, who is hovering over the scuffle with his right hand on Pretti’s back, backs away from the group with what appears to be a gun in his right hand just before the first shot.
—Hannah Fingerhut, Twin Cities, 25 Jan. 2026
New vehicles prices have climbed; the average transaction price was hovering around $50,000 toward the end of last year, up 30% from less than $38,747 to begin 2020, according to Cox Automotive.
—Michael Wayland, CNBC, 25 Jan. 2026
Milwaukee is in for a chilly week with high temperatures topping out around 15 and lows hovering near 0 into Friday.
—Steven Martinez, jsonline.com, 25 Jan. 2026
Temperatures are anticipated to drop again into the single digits, with wind chills hovering at or just below 0, Monday night into early Tuesday throughout much of Oklahoma.
—Brandy McDonnell, Oklahoman, 25 Jan. 2026
Verb
In their latest public comments, Logan and Hammack have both expressed concern that this is the fifth consecutive year that inflation is hovering above the Fed’s 2% target.
—Bryan Mena, CNN Money, 27 Jan. 2026
Clouds are expected to build again Wednesday, with highs near 21 and wind chills hovering around zero, followed by a partly cloudy and cold night with lows near 9.
—Baltimore Sun Staff, Baltimore Sun, 27 Jan. 2026
North Texas awoke to temperatures hovering around 15 degrees Monday as cold air blanketed the region for a third day and Dallas-Fort Worth hit a record for snowfall.
—Dallas Morning News, 26 Jan. 2026
At that time, the windchill was hovering at 1 degree below zero.
—Lauren Penington, Denver Post, 26 Jan. 2026
Videos show an officer, who is hovering over the scuffle with his right hand on Pretti’s back, backs away from the group with what appears to be a gun in his right hand just before the first shot.
—Hannah Fingerhut, Twin Cities, 25 Jan. 2026
New vehicles prices have climbed; the average transaction price was hovering around $50,000 toward the end of last year, up 30% from less than $38,747 to begin 2020, according to Cox Automotive.
—Michael Wayland, CNBC, 25 Jan. 2026
Milwaukee is in for a chilly week with high temperatures topping out around 15 and lows hovering near 0 into Friday.
—Steven Martinez, jsonline.com, 25 Jan. 2026
Temperatures are anticipated to drop again into the single digits, with wind chills hovering at or just below 0, Monday night into early Tuesday throughout much of Oklahoma.
—Brandy McDonnell, Oklahoman, 25 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hovering
Verb
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Pancreatic cancer's early symptoms include weight loss, light-colored stool or floating stools, dark-colored urine, itching, loss of appetite, belly pain that spreads from the sides to the back and yellowing of the skin and eyes, according to the Mayo Clinic.—
Sarah Sotoodeh,
FOXNews.com,
28 Jan. 2026
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On a rainy day last week, the green sea turtle pumped her limbs and stretched her beak up to chomp a lettuce leaf floating on the surface of a tank at the Aquarium of the Pacific in Long Beach.—
Lila Seidman,
Los Angeles Times,
28 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Max Houser 6-Tier Hanging Closet Shelf Instantly create more hanging space with this fabric shelving unit that makes use of otherwise dead vertical space.—
Stephanie Osmanski,
Better Homes & Gardens,
19 Dec. 2025
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Of the other methods – including electrocution, lethal gas and hanging – lethal injection had the highest botch rate of more than 7%. ‘An embrace of brutality’ Still, states have remained averse to the firing squad, a position that experts who spoke to CNN believe stems from its overt violence.—
Dakin Andone,
CNN Money,
10 Apr. 2025
Verb
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And oh, yeah, Richard (my host at the Monaco Grand Prix and owner of the company), his wife Ali Hadida and their two-year-old son Harry are sailing in Oyster World Rally aboard their Oyster 885 Lush as well.—
Bill Springer,
Forbes.com,
29 Jan. 2026
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Perhaps the best part about sailing with Regent Seven Seas Cruises is the two-for-one all-inclusive fares, which may include round-trip airfare, a pre-cruise hotel stay, and unlimited shore excursions—along with alcohol, food, Wi-Fi, gratuities, and transfers.—
Lauren Dana Ellman,
Travel + Leisure,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Outside the cell, the ATP is converted into adenosine, which acts on neurons — in this case, by exciting neurons that inhibit swimming and suppressing swim neurons.—
Ingrid Wickelgren,
Quanta Magazine,
30 Jan. 2026
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Even before the expedition reached land, Islanders had gone out to the ships, paddling canoes or reed bundles, or just swimming, unafraid and unarmed.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 Jan. 2026
Verb
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To convey the spirit of the moment, John Edwards inverted the photograph, turning the reflection into an illusion where the sky above the Buddha becomes a tapestry of floating flowers and drifting plants.—
Cecilia Rodriguez,
Forbes.com,
26 Jan. 2026
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Ice, blowing and drifting snow has created extremely hazardous road conditions.—
Cheryl Vari,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
26 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Picture sipping coffee as the sun rises over the Rockies, or gliding past red rock canyons en route to Glacier National Park, all from the comfort of a panoramic observation car.—
Paris Wilson,
Condé Nast Traveler,
28 Jan. 2026
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Though Amazon was previously UPS' largest customer, the two companies are in the process of gliding down operations together.—
Laya Neelakandan,
CNBC,
27 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Jones has played so well and has looked so poised, and the team has done such a solid job with him at the controls that there has been talk lately about a possible quarterback controversy brewing in the Bay Area.—
Robert Marvi,
MSNBC Newsweek,
14 Nov. 2025
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Here was the postwar American housewife—neatly dressed, pretty, poised, active—stepping unwittingly into a scene of utter depravity and sadism that reflected back at this wholesome young mother the darkest recesses of the human mind.—
Maureen Lee Lenker,
Entertainment Weekly,
10 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hovering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hovering. Accessed 2 Feb. 2026.
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