1
as in fiddling (around)
to spend time in aimless activity
spent the vacation day just messing around
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in flirting
to show a sexual attraction for someone just for fun
a guy who goes to the health club mainly to mess around with the women
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in traveling
to come or be together as friends
if you continue to mess around with such narrow-minded boobs, you'll begin to think and act like them
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of messing around
Miami’s defense isn’t messing around The Hurricanes defense has rattled Julian Sayin.
—
Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 31 Dec. 2025
Apple isn't messing around with this update.
—PC Magazine, 21 Oct. 2025
The dismantling of the Cubs in the NLDS was a statement series that the Brewers are not messing around and have the power to win their first World Series.
—Ben Verbrugge, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Oct. 2025
Around March, during a session with Allen and Slatkin, Maddell started messing around with chords to pair with an acoustic that Slatkin had at the ready.
—Josh Glicksman, Billboard, 12 Aug. 2025
Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 31 Dec. 2025
Apple isn't messing around with this update.
—PC Magazine, 21 Oct. 2025
The dismantling of the Cubs in the NLDS was a statement series that the Brewers are not messing around and have the power to win their first World Series.
—Ben Verbrugge, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Oct. 2025
Around March, during a session with Allen and Slatkin, Maddell started messing around with chords to pair with an acoustic that Slatkin had at the ready.
—Josh Glicksman, Billboard, 12 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for messing around
Verb
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He's spent the last three seasons flirting and dodging anything serious, but season 4 finally gives him his own love story.—
Allison DeGrushe,
Entertainment Weekly,
29 Jan. 2026
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There was a lot of flirting and smiling going on.—
Emy LaCroix,
PEOPLE,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
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For Ty Dolla Sign, the perfect Sunday begins in the sky, traveling back to Los Angeles from wherever his career has last taken him.—
Kailyn Brown,
Los Angeles Times,
30 Jan. 2026
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The driverless Waymo, which was traveling at 17 miles per hour, quickly hit the brakes and collided with the child at a speed of roughly 6 miles per hour (Waymo claimed in its blog post that a human driver in the same situation would have only had time to slow to 14 mph).—
Alexei Oreskovic,
Fortune,
30 Jan. 2026
Verb
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While Congress currently appears inclined to reject those reductions, most universities are playing it very cautiously with respect to research and graduate education commitments, given the uncertainty that’s likely to continue at the federal level.—
Michael T. Nietzel,
Forbes.com,
29 Jan. 2026
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Mesidor lacks ideal length and turns 25 in April after playing six college seasons.—
Joseph Person,
New York Times,
28 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Gisin hopes that by fooling around with measurements of these more exotic states, physicists will come to better understand the role of measurement in general.—
Quanta Magazine,
Quanta Magazine,
8 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Additionally, the dolphins may also be associating with non-dolphin-eating orcas to learn to distinguish their sounds from those of the threatening mammal-eating killer whales.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
12 Dec. 2025
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Hellfire Club Dustin (Gaten Matarazzo) is the only one still associating himself with the Hellfire Club at Hawkins High School, because the rest of the student body still thinks Eddie Munson (Joseph Quinn) is responsible for killing Vecna’s victims last season.—
Dessi Gomez,
Deadline,
26 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Organized labor won his backing because hooking up with the Teamsters and learning to drive a truck got him out of the California tomato fields.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
31 Dec. 2025
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But the 27-year-old Alabama man didn’t see through on that promise and ended up staying in Fiji and hooking up with other lovelies.—
Madeleine Marr,
Miami Herald,
27 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Columbus blanked the Blackhawks on their two power-play chances, running their string of futility to 26 man-advantages and 10 games without a goal.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
31 Jan. 2026
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On January 30, the 38-year-old pop star was photographed running an errand in a classic white t-shirt and baggy blue jeans, unbothered by the way her relaxed denim pooled around her thin flip-flops.—
Emily Tannenbaum,
Glamour,
31 Jan. 2026
Verb
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In 2019, city employees began hanging about 500 trick-or-treat pumpkin buckets in the trees on Main Street every October.—
Elliott Harrell,
Travel + Leisure,
18 Oct. 2025
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Orion Nebula Those viewing from a dark sky location may also notice a blurry patch of light hanging about 5 degrees below Orion's belt.—
Anthony Wood,
Space.com,
14 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Messing around.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/messing%20around. Accessed 1 Feb. 2026.
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