LOOKING ON Synonyms: 33 Similar and Opposite Words

looking on

verb

present participle of look on

as in staring

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Recent Examples of Synonyms for looking on

Verb

Very few things in movies and television shows delight me as much as a mysterious character revealing his or her fascinating backstory through an extended monologue that is delivered while staring off into the unspecified middle distance.

— Brian Grubb, Vulture, 10 Aug. 2026
Remember, staring directly at the sun during the partial phases of an eclipse can cause permanent vision loss.

— Anthony Wood, Space.com, 5 Aug. 2026

Definition of staring

Verb

Bored staffers spent endless hours gazing at their phones, leading supervisors to restrict phone use.

— Jesse Coburn, ProPublica, 12 Aug. 2026
The first image shows the mother-of-two enjoying a moment of calm outside, wearing a pair of pale jeans and a blue striped shirt, gazing thoughtfully into the distance.

— Jennifer Hassan, USA Today, 4 Aug. 2026

Definition of gazing

Verb

And taking a five-time Gold Glover out of the hot corner left a gaping hole in the Giants’ defense.

— Devin Bradshaw, Mercury News, 8 Aug. 2026
The images her sister captured after the strike show the trajectory of the projectile, which ripped through floor after floor, and left a gaping hole covered in a thick layer of white dust.

— Ava Bambuck, CNN Money, 6 Aug. 2026

Definition of gaping

Verb

Instead, the skin-frying Friday saw common flow of people going through, gawking at the large screens and a group of sailors allowing some passing by to do pull-ups from a bar.

— Amethyst Martinez, USA Today, 3 July 2026
The walk to the stadium is a mile or so along the Alaskan Way, where restaurants like the Crab Pot are opening up, but everyone is gawking at the street spectacle.

— Simon Hughes, New York Times, 24 June 2026

Definition of gawking

Verb

All the while the fMRI churned on, peering through the dogs’ skulls into the brain below and looking for the areas that lit up as a result of the visual stimuli.

— Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 10 Aug. 2026
Someone moving between homes, peering through windows and carrying a large knife, CNN affiliate KSDK reported.

— Rebekah Riess, CNN Money, 7 Aug. 2026

Definition of peering

Verb

This marks mainland Europe's first total eclipse since 1999, with the path of totality sweeping from Russia, across the Arctic, Greenland, and Iceland, before culminating in Spain, a prime viewing destination.

— Jamie Carter, Forbes.com, 8 Aug. 2026
Continuing on the trial theme, the offense repped 12- and 11-personnel during the media viewing period.

— Aaron Heisen, Daily News, 8 Aug. 2026

Definition of viewing

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“Looking on.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/looking%20on. Accessed 14 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of looking on

verb

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