1
as in congratulating
to express to (someone) admiration for his or her success or good fortune
she hugged herself for having made a killing on the investment
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in clasping
to put one's arms around and press tightly
Grandma hugged the grandchildren good-bye
Synonyms & Similar Words
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 hugging
Sitting just to the left of the net with American goaltender Connor Hellebuyck still hugging the opposite post, MacKinnon sailed a wrist shot just wide of the pipes.
—
Austin Perry Outkick, FOXNews.com, 14 May 2026
Goodell had some fun onstage, hugging Buck in the increasingly aggressive way that he has been known to hug players at the draft.
—Peter White, Deadline, 12 May 2026
Footage obtained by the outlet shows the mother and son hugging emotionally in the corridors of Sunrise Hospital, where Isaiah had been treated.
—Escher Walcott, PEOPLE, 12 May 2026
At the end of Williams’ set, Hart extended an olive branch to the fellow comedian, shaking his hand and hugging him.
—Jordan Moreau, Variety, 11 May 2026
The pair posed on the electric blue carpet, hugging and embracing for the cameras.
—Taijuan Moorman, USA Today, 7 May 2026
Instead of opting for a body-hugging gown, Kim Kardashian went wore a bright orange metallic body plate from the ’60s designed by Allen Jones.
—Beatrice Dupuy, Chicago Tribune, 5 May 2026
Maitlyn Gandy, Athena’s mother, could be seen crying and hugging Athena’s younger sister.
—Harriet Ramos
may 5, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 5 May 2026
But there’s also much toasting and kissing and hugging as the married couples reunite with at least one baby in tow and possibly another as Danny and Claude consider adopting their own.
—Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 4 May 2026
Austin Perry Outkick, FOXNews.com, 14 May 2026
Goodell had some fun onstage, hugging Buck in the increasingly aggressive way that he has been known to hug players at the draft.
—Peter White, Deadline, 12 May 2026
Footage obtained by the outlet shows the mother and son hugging emotionally in the corridors of Sunrise Hospital, where Isaiah had been treated.
—Escher Walcott, PEOPLE, 12 May 2026
At the end of Williams’ set, Hart extended an olive branch to the fellow comedian, shaking his hand and hugging him.
—Jordan Moreau, Variety, 11 May 2026
The pair posed on the electric blue carpet, hugging and embracing for the cameras.
—Taijuan Moorman, USA Today, 7 May 2026
Instead of opting for a body-hugging gown, Kim Kardashian went wore a bright orange metallic body plate from the ’60s designed by Allen Jones.
—Beatrice Dupuy, Chicago Tribune, 5 May 2026
Maitlyn Gandy, Athena’s mother, could be seen crying and hugging Athena’s younger sister.
—Harriet Ramos
may 5, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 5 May 2026
But there’s also much toasting and kissing and hugging as the married couples reunite with at least one baby in tow and possibly another as Danny and Claude consider adopting their own.
—Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 4 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hugging
Verb
-
Redick held back tears when general manager Rob Pelinka presented him with the game ball in the locker room on March 31 and showed a video of Redick’s sons, Knox and Kai, congratulating their dad.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
9 May 2026
-
Sometimes, the crowd at a nearby ballpark will issue a rousing cheer – as if congratulating you on a hike well done.—
John Metcalfe,
Mercury News,
4 May 2026
Verb
-
McDaniels held onto Murray for dear life — often literally clasping his jersey — as the Nuggets tried to run him off every conceivable screen.—
Bennett Durando,
Denver Post,
1 May 2026
-
The june bug falls to the bottom of the bag but manages to recover from a new round of kicking by clasping to a leaf.—
María Ospina,
The Dial,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Like all relationships, the one between writer and reader is changeable—and probably most writers cycle among attitudes rather than clinging to any single one.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
11 May 2026
-
Among those who showed up that morning were a woman who had come with her elderly father, a young Native American couple, a man in an addiction recovery program and a mother with a toddler clinging to her leg.—
Shannon Pettypiece,
NBC news,
11 May 2026
Verb
-
The driver who picked up the goods told FT that grabbing items in the location takes roughly five minutes, while the same trip to a Walmart Supercenter store could take 25 minutes.—
Glenn Taylor,
Footwear News,
15 May 2026
-
The Limitless Lash Mascara is especially worth grabbing while it’s marked down.—
Jeaneen Russell,
PEOPLE,
15 May 2026
Verb
-
Across Florida and throughout the country, behavioral-health providers are increasingly embracing approaches that focus on the whole person and the whole family.—
Maria Bledsoe,
The Orlando Sentinel,
17 May 2026
-
Hirokazu Koreeda brings his customary warmth and generosity of spirit to the seemingly cold presence of GenAI in our lives in Sheep in the Box (Hako no naka no hitsuji), in which grieving parents hope to ease their pain by embracing a humanoid built in their dead son’s image.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
16 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Hugging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hugging. Accessed 19 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
