OCCUPYING Synonyms: 34 Similar and Opposite Words

occupying

verb

Definition of occupying next

present participle of occupy

as in interesting

to hold the attention of a puzzle will occupy that child for hours

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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.

Recent Examples of occupying The Ducks and Oilers are in a group of four teams separated by a single point, currently occupying the second and third playoff spots in the Pacific Division and the two Western Conference wild-card slots. —

Andrew Knoll, Oc Register, 24 Feb. 2026 The mere idea of Q and Angelina occupying the same space is worth the price of admission. —

Dalton Ross, Entertainment Weekly, 23 Feb. 2026 Denver now has three guards occupying its two-way spots, with Simpson joining rookies Curtis Jones and Tamar Bates. —

Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 19 Feb. 2026 If sleeper sharks have been quietly occupying these depths all along, undetected simply because nobody was looking, the biodiversity of the deep Antarctic may be more complex than current records indicate. —

Hanna Wickes, Charlotte Observer, 19 Feb. 2026 Some are small, occupying a floor of an office building; others, including the University of Southern California and Arizona State University, have their own buildings emblazoned with their school’s logo in massive font. —

Rose Horowitch, The Atlantic, 18 Feb. 2026 With Declan Rice occupying Habib Diarra, Martin Zubimendi has time and space to shoot from outside the box. —

Ahmed Walid, New York Times, 18 Feb. 2026 They're arranged in haphazard rows, with Andrew Jackson occupying a prime front spot simply because the owner likes his hair. —

Danielle Paquette The Washington Post, Arkansas Online, 17 Feb. 2026 In general, a garden bed should be organized so the low-lying plants are in the foreground or used as edging, the medium-sized plants are occupying the middle section, and the tall plants are in the back. —

David Beaulieu, The Spruce, 15 Feb. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for occupying

Verb

Shelby has traveled to Iceland, Portugal, Spain, France, Ireland, and more, immersing herself in each fashion market, respectively.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 16 Feb. 2026
Starting with his first film, 1967’s Titicut Follies, the director mastered a specific approach to nonfiction, eschewing talking-head interviews, explanatory title cards, and scores in favor of immersing viewers in unique worlds that played out in front of his camera.

— Tim Grierson, Rolling Stone, 16 Feb. 2026