as in preferring
to show partiality toward
I'm leaning toward sausage on our pizza tonight—we got pepperoni the last three times
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for leaning (toward or towards)
Verb
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Due to her influence, Gein avoided going on dates with women, preferring to spend his time poring over anatomy books.—
Olivia B. Waxman,
Time,
3 Oct. 2025 -
Pochettino has moved Pulisic to the right wing at times, preferring to play Tim Weah on the left.—
Paul Tenorio,
New York Times,
2 Oct. 2025
Verb
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And social director Kassidy Silva bashfully admitted to liking Tabi nails with the peeking-through-hands emoji.—
Kara Nesvig,
Allure,
24 Sep. 2025
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No matter how meritless the lawsuit (for example, the Times suit boils down to simply not liking the coverage), several companies settled in order to curry favor.—
Matt Robison,
MSNBC Newsweek,
19 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Higher energy prices are primarily a result of policies favoring wind and solar energy.—
Craig Rucker,
Boston Herald,
26 Sep. 2025
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The Big Ten resisted, favoring instead its own proposal that featured a stacked deck of automatic bids.—
Blake Toppmeyer,
USA TODAY,
25 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The epic-length adaptation of the seminal Mary Shelley novel premiered at Venice Film Festival before enjoying surprise screenings at Telluride Film Festival and another red carpet at the Toronto International Film Festival.—
J. Kim Murphy,
Variety,
1 Oct. 2025
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In the photo, the twins could be seen enjoying vanilla ice cream cones at a carnival.—
Hannah Sacks,
PEOPLE,
1 Oct. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Leaning (toward or towards).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/leaning%20%28toward%20or%20towards%29. Accessed 6 Oct. 2025.
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