as in rambling
passing from one topic to another
a long, maundering conversation about what was wrong with the world and how he could fix it
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in wandering
to move about from place to place aimlessly
maundered all over town on his day off
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in rattling
to talk at length without sticking to a topic or getting to a point
ask her a question and she'll maunder for half an hour
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in complaining
chiefly British
to express dissatisfaction, pain, or resentment usually tiresomely
a couple of mates maundering over their beer in a dark corner of the pub
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for maundering
Adjective
-
Spinella shucks off sentimentality, always showing us Con’s offhand humor and sometimes nervous, defensive rambling.—
Jackson McHenry,
Vulture,
3 June 2026 -
Carnivores shouldn’t miss out on Peter upstairs—a rambling dining venue perched on the 24th floor, high above the rooms, that looks like a glitzy Vegas club complete with purple accents and ethereal, Avatar-esque light sculptures.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
2 June 2026
Noun
-
Some of the prattle can feel like treading water, a delaying tactic until the inevitable confrontation scene.—
Theater Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
17 Apr. 2026
-
The bizarre reality of daily life in a Southeast Asian scam compound—the tactics, the tone, the mix of cruelty and upbeat corporate prattle—is revealed at an unprecedented level of resolution in a leak of documents to WIRED from a whistleblower inside one such sprawling fraud operation.—
Andy Greenberg,
Wired News,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Visitors might arrive by crossing the central plaza; emerging from the underground parking garage, nestled into a berm; or else wandering in from the surrounding Jackson Park, a network of pastoral paths completed by Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux in 1871.—
Sam Cochran,
Architectural Digest,
4 June 2026
-
Check tour lengths in advance and look at what else is on the property — many distilleries sit on historic estates worth wandering for the scenery alone.—
Lauren Schuster,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
3 June 2026
Verb
-
The uncertainty is not only rattling European allies worried about the message being sent to Russia, but also risks hurting morale among American troops -- some of whom had their rotations canceled shortly before departure -- and comes as the Army budget is already strained.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
6 June 2026
-
Tthere’s fiddle and harmonica in the mix and the percussion covers everything from a rattling train car sound to a rampaging elephant.—
Christopher Arnott,
Hartford Courant,
4 June 2026
Verb
-
The move was met with outrage, with fans criticizing the singer for jumping the gun and complaining that the weather had cleared up before becoming too serious.—
Shania Russell,
Entertainment Weekly,
7 June 2026
-
Doja Cat is most likely referring to voice notes, or the audio post feature, which seemed to be discontinued on X sometime in early 2025, according to user posts complaining that the feature had been removed.—
Jack Dunn,
Variety,
4 June 2026
Noun
-
Eichenberger recently converted one of the ponds into a small babbling brook to maintain a steady flow of water.—
Lennie Omalza,
Louisville Courier Journal,
19 Feb. 2026
-
The internet has spoken—the babbling of Minions will be heard at the 2026 Winter Olympics.—
Dani Di Placido,
Forbes.com,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Nothing but smoke and fires roaming freely, invading even our graves.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
9 June 2026
-
Videos went viral of bears rummaging through supermarket aisles and roaming school grounds, setting local communities on edge.—
Jessie Yeung,
CNN Money,
9 June 2026
Verb
-
As if each of us isn’t a walking embodiment of our moment, clueless and attuned at once, screaming about one thing and in total denial about another.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
10 June 2026
-
There were the arrests of tearful and screaming immigrants, captured on video and played on endless loops across social media.—
Moriah Balingit,
Los Angeles Times,
9 June 2026
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.
Cite this Entry
“Maundering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/maundering. Accessed 14 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
