as in brooding
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Dissimilar Words
1
as in lingering
to move or act slowly
we were in a rush, and the Sunday driver in front of us was just moping along
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in pouting
to silently go about in a bad mood
she's been moping all weekend because her boyfriend hasn't called even once
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of moping
Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 20 Mar. 2026
In other words, if Hollywood had an awards show for public corruption trials, this case would be at home watching it and moping that it didn’t get nominated.
—Susan Shelley, Oc Register, 1 Feb. 2026
Koko storms off and spends the rest of the evening moping about the interaction.
—Jihan Forbes, Allure, 29 Oct. 2025
In June the McCoys went back to Bloomington and Catherine spent the summer moping.
—Literary Hub, 7 Oct. 2025
One week, a colleague noticed Packard moping around the office and asked what was wrong.
—Zach Helfand, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2025
Rather than moping about, get your shop on with one or all of these many holiday sales.
—Averi Baudler, People.com, 22 Aug. 2025
Verb
Duke, whose time in the pub is spent either moping or getting hyped up by his aunt Kaulo doing her best Lady Macbeth.
—Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 20 Mar. 2026
In other words, if Hollywood had an awards show for public corruption trials, this case would be at home watching it and moping that it didn’t get nominated.
—Susan Shelley, Oc Register, 1 Feb. 2026
Koko storms off and spends the rest of the evening moping about the interaction.
—Jihan Forbes, Allure, 29 Oct. 2025
In June the McCoys went back to Bloomington and Catherine spent the summer moping.
—Literary Hub, 7 Oct. 2025
One week, a colleague noticed Packard moping around the office and asked what was wrong.
—Zach Helfand, New Yorker, 25 Aug. 2025
Rather than moping about, get your shop on with one or all of these many holiday sales.
—Averi Baudler, People.com, 22 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for moping
Adjective
-
That biography took the form of a dark romance between the self-lacerating Louis and his fiercely loving but brutal maker, Lestat, filtered through the former’s brooding subjectivity.—
Judy Berman,
Time,
2 June 2026
-
Sisters Ellie, Lily and Powell Balkcom delivered a powerfully brooding, almost hauntingly beautiful cover of a cover that has come to serve as a cornerstone of their emerging neo-traditional sound.—
Chris Barilla,
PEOPLE,
22 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The one question lingering after the Garrett trade was whether or not his addition would lure Rams great Aaron Donald, 35, out of retirement for one last ride.—
Adam Grosbard,
Oc Register,
9 June 2026
-
Psychologists have long been interested in why some slights refuse to fade, and how those lingering injuries can settle in — reshaping a person’s thoughts, mood and sense of self over time.—
The Washington Post,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
9 June 2026
Verb
-
Some people will probably be pouting in those debriefs.—
Jeff Gluck,
New York Times,
12 Mar. 2026
-
My introduction to Peters came late last year, when Instagram’s algorithm served me a video of him wearing a baseball cap, primping and pouting for the camera.—
Thomas Chatterton Williams,
The Atlantic,
19 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
But Maguire, now 43, became sad and irritable, and didn’t want to be around his newborn.—
Keith Wagstaff,
Los Angeles Times,
10 June 2026
-
Additionally, Owens' youngest child, Titus, who was just a toddler when his mother died, was confused, irritable and inconsolable in the weeks after her death, Dias shared.—
Lynsey Eidell,
PEOPLE,
2 June 2026
Verb
-
Tech had a rough Tuesday, dragging the S&P and Nasdaq lower.—
John Towfighi,
CNN Money,
9 June 2026
-
Part of Cantoni’s job is to collect ticks from around the state through a process called dragging.—
Allison Gollenberg,
Hartford Courant,
9 June 2026
Verb
-
But nothing good came from sulking.—
Spencer Nusbaum,
New York Times,
19 May 2026
-
With that goal in mind, Dijkstra has constructed a scheme to ensure that King Radovid stops drinking and sulking over Jaskier and embraces his role as one of the few remaining leaders who can oppose Emhyr’s army.—
Scott Meslow,
Vulture,
30 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Now that Hakeem Jeffries has recommended that Trump not attend game 3 of the NBA Finals in NYC, the petulant brat will most certainly attend.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
8 June 2026
-
There’s been a lot of petulant behavior during the past year, during the losses and sometimes the wins, and Martinez is still sitting in the box.—
Matthew Futterman,
New York Times,
2 June 2026
Verb
-
If there are no seats, there’ll be no place to put sick passengers and the train will have to stay in the station, delaying the system.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
12 June 2026
-
From stunting and weakening plant growth to delaying flower production, these 1/10th-inch-long pests can wreak havoc.—
Abby Monteil,
The Spruce,
12 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Moping.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/moping. Accessed 15 Jun. 2026.
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