1
as in imperceptible
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2
as in ambling
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Dissimilar Words
1
as in encroaching
to advance gradually beyond the usual or desirable limits
every year the water inches further up the embankments, threatening to permanently engulf the island city
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2
as in dragging
to move slowly
the car inched carefully across the snow-covered causeway
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Recent Examples of inching
Jennifer Liu, CNBC, 5 Nov. 2025
And while senators appear to be inching toward a deal this week, the progress is fragile and a breakthrough far from certain.
—Mike Lillis, The Hill, 5 Nov. 2025
Meanwhile, more pop and country hits are inching into the Top 40.
—Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 5 Nov. 2025
One Battle After Another picked up another $1 million and change in its sixth week, inching it ever closer to the $75 million bonus-point threshold.
—Joe Reid, Vulture, 4 Nov. 2025
In the video, the contractor stopped in his tracks, confused about the giant tortoise slowly inching its way inside.
—Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2025
And with Ricky Pearsall and Brandon Aiyuk inching closer to returning, there’s a chance the team’s top pass catchers — including McCaffrey and George Kittle — could be together in the coming weeks for the first time this season.
—Matt Barrows, New York Times, 2 Nov. 2025
Her leg nudges mine, the hem of her overalls inching up her thighs.
—Bailey Richards, PEOPLE, 30 Oct. 2025
As for air freight, rates on the trans-Pacific route are inching up again.
—Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 29 Oct. 2025
Verb
Workers are fighting for a shrinking pool of job openings, AI is seemingly threatening jobs and long-term unemployment is inching up.
—Jennifer Liu, CNBC, 5 Nov. 2025
And while senators appear to be inching toward a deal this week, the progress is fragile and a breakthrough far from certain.
—Mike Lillis, The Hill, 5 Nov. 2025
Meanwhile, more pop and country hits are inching into the Top 40.
—Larisha Paul, Rolling Stone, 5 Nov. 2025
One Battle After Another picked up another $1 million and change in its sixth week, inching it ever closer to the $75 million bonus-point threshold.
—Joe Reid, Vulture, 4 Nov. 2025
In the video, the contractor stopped in his tracks, confused about the giant tortoise slowly inching its way inside.
—Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Nov. 2025
And with Ricky Pearsall and Brandon Aiyuk inching closer to returning, there’s a chance the team’s top pass catchers — including McCaffrey and George Kittle — could be together in the coming weeks for the first time this season.
—Matt Barrows, New York Times, 2 Nov. 2025
Her leg nudges mine, the hem of her overalls inching up her thighs.
—Bailey Richards, PEOPLE, 30 Oct. 2025
As for air freight, rates on the trans-Pacific route are inching up again.
—Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 29 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for inching
Adjective
-
Caplan-Auerbach is studying nearly imperceptible seismic tremors that have preceded major landslides, including the August one in Tracy Arm.—
Ella Nilsen,
CNN Money,
22 Oct. 2025
-
For most folks watching at home, the change was imperceptible.—
Dieter Kurtenbach,
Mercury News,
20 Oct. 2025
Verb
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The men who play in the NFL would have something to say to today’s workers about the encroaching techno-supervision.—
Tom Krasovic,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
5 Nov. 2025
-
The White House is nonetheless fielding complaints, made in private and public, from Republicans who believe Trump is encroaching on Congress’s power of taxation and threatening to send the United States into an economic backslide.—
David Sivak,
The Washington Examiner,
31 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Apart from being walking-friendly enough for commuting to and from the office, the relatively comfortable heel also gives your denim, maxidresses, and trousers a little lift, keeping hems from dragging.—
Shelby Ying Hyde,
Glamour,
11 Nov. 2025
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Introducing a 50-year mortgage could help individuals and families facing higher borrowing and homeownership costs, but experts warn that any benefit could be easily outweighed by dragging on payments for 20 years longer than the standard 30-year term.—
Giulia Carbonaro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
What truly hampers Regretting You is its inescapable unoriginality, its plodding, uninventive, unthoughtful attempts at swoon and heartbreak.—
Richard Lawson,
HollywoodReporter,
22 Oct. 2025
-
Occasionally, as in the obscurity of Legion’s later episodes or the plodding pace of some Fargo plots, this approach can verge on self-indulgence.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
5 Aug. 2025
Verb
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In the end, the Democrats mostly oriented their demands toward health care—above all, the renewal of expiring Obamacare subsidies—as opposed to, say, prioritizing more abstract ultimatums related to creeping authoritarianism.—
Jon Allsop,
New Yorker,
11 Nov. 2025
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Although the start of winter is still a few weeks away, colder temperatures and even snow chances are creeping in.—
Laura L. Davis,
Nashville Tennessean,
10 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Layer it with a mix of fall florals and your favorite centerpiece, or keep it simple with a tapered candle display.—
Caley Sturgill,
Southern Living,
9 Nov. 2025
-
That stage is a silo-like cylinder with a tapered nose cone, measuring 165 feet tall, and weighing more than 200,000 pounds.—
Jeffrey Kluger,
Time,
5 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
His fur was singed and bitten, his arm broken, and his mouth crawling with maggots.—
Alice Gibbs,
MSNBC Newsweek,
4 Nov. 2025
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Amazon has already taken steps in recent months to prevent external AI agents from crawling its website, including those developed by OpenAI, Google and Meta.—
Ashley Capoot,Annie Palmer,
CNBC,
4 Nov. 2025
Verb
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So, if the Phillies were to target Bichette, there would be some sort of shuffling in the infield.—
Patrick McAvoy,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 Nov. 2025
-
In 2022, Kelsey pleaded guilty to illegally shuffling money from his state Senate campaign account to his federal congressional campaign account.—
Vivian Jones,
Nashville Tennessean,
7 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Inching.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/inching. Accessed 18 Nov. 2025.
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