operating 1 of 2

operating

2 of 2

verb

present participle of operate
1
as in handling
to control the mechanical operation of do not operate heavy machinery, including cars, after taking this medication

Synonyms & Similar Words

2
3
as in working
to produce a desired effect the medicine will take an hour or so to operate the first time you use it

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

4

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 operating
Adjective
Last year, though revenue and operating profit increased, non-operating red ink pushed the company into a full-year loss of NT$766 million, or $25 million. Russell Flannery, Forbes.com, 26 Aug. 2025 The adjusted net income decreased by 8% y-o-y to $3.9 billion in the first nine months of 2022 due to higher expenses as a % of revenues and lower non-operating income. Trefis Team, Forbes, 11 Jan. 2023 Under Proposition 309, voters casting mail-in ballots could provide a driver's license or non-operating identification license number, the last four digits of a social security number, or a unique identifying number provided by the secretary of state for voter registration purposes. Arlyssa D. Becenti, The Arizona Republic, 27 Oct. 2022 Known for many years for its great and famous passenger trains, the last regularly scheduled FECR passenger train ran on July 31, 1968, due to the work stoppage by the non-operating unions that began on January 22, 1963. Seth H. Bramson, Sun Sentinel, 12 Oct. 2022 On Monday, as Hasbro released its fourth quarter earnings, the toy maker recorded a $41.3 million net non-cash, non-operating charge associated with the company’s investment in the Discovery Family Channel. Etan Vlessing, The Hollywood Reporter, 7 Feb. 2022
Verb
As documented in The San Diego Union-Tribune’s 72 Hours Project, the region’s mental health care system, like many in the nation, has been operating over capacity for years. Paul Sisson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 10 Oct. 2025 MedX AirOne, an air ambulance service operating in Nevada, was rebranded to become part of Classic Air Medical earlier this decade, according to those companies’ websites. Chris Biderman, Sacbee.com, 10 Oct. 2025 The Cardinals have historically refrained from operating with a lame-duck manager. Katie Woo, New York Times, 10 Oct. 2025 Currently, there are just 14 hospitals operating in Gaza, all partially functioning, according to the agency. Mary Kekatos, ABC News, 10 Oct. 2025 That sounds nothing like other companies that are actually operating power plants. Eleanor Pringle, Fortune, 10 Oct. 2025 What To Know A DHS review of Drug Enforcement Administration material said gangs operating in southwest Chicago neighborhoods, including Pilsen and Little Village, were presented with bounties to carry out assassinations of federal officers, according to the Washington Examiner. Billal Rahman, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Oct. 2025 Bitcoin Depot, the company operating the kiosk, is suing the Sheriff’s Office for the thousands of dollars, which was seized from the machine as a result of a search warrant. Arkansas Online, 4 Oct. 2025 At its peak, Rite Aid, which was founded in 1962 in Scranton, Pennsylvania, had thousands of stores operating across the country. Usa Today, USA Today, 3 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for operating
Adjective
  • The paper addresses operational procedures, describing mechanical and electrical triggers, containment strategies for managing gases, and a full process timeline of roughly 335 minutes from initiation to material extraction.
    Aman Tripathi, Interesting Engineering, 12 Oct. 2025
  • Tuesday was filled with intensive coaching and mentorship sessions with Walmart and Sam's Club merchants, sourcing experts and past Open Call alumni about scaling up production, improving packaging, and strengthening their financial and operational readiness.
    Serenah McKay, Arkansas Online, 11 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Be careful when handling debris that may have blown into your yard.
    NC Weather Bot, Charlotte Observer, 12 Oct. 2025
  • Don Lisi, Rogers Police Department spokesman, said police investigate cases involving virtual currency scams on a regular basis, and the department is currently handling a couple of such cases.
    Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 4 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Taking over for Brady after his retirement following the 2022 season, was Mayfield, who is off to the best start of his NFL career through six games even while managing without several key offensive weapons.
    Cole Sullivan, MSNBC Newsweek, 15 Oct. 2025
  • Most of those who shaped or even marginally influenced the events of October 7th are gone, leaving Gaza’s authority withered to the point that even managing the hostages has become paralyzingly difficult.
    Mohammed R. Mhawish, New Yorker, 14 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • For years, Bloom was hyped as a Silicon Valley unicorn, but in 2012 the SEC charged an investment bank working with Bloom of using inflated numbers to mislead investors.
    Jordan Blum, Fortune, 16 Oct. 2025
  • Christiaan Triebert is a Times reporter working on the Visual Investigations team, a group that combines traditional reporting with digital sleuthing and analysis of visual evidence to verify and source facts from around the world.
    Danny Makki, New York Times, 16 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • This watch guide was created using technology provided by Data Skrive.
    Data Skrive, New York Times, 14 Oct. 2025
  • Vote as many times as you’d like until then without using bots or any other artificial methods of voting.
    Nathan Canilao, Mercury News, 13 Oct. 2025
Adjective
  • Henry’s operative term is plyometrics, referring to short bursts of exercise that build agility.
    Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 8 Oct. 2025
  • Usually, this does not include lodging, transportation, or post-operative assistance.
    Maria Williams, USA Today, 6 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • They’re mainly intended to handle the inference stage of running AI models — the phase after the technology is trained.
    Jessica Coacci, Fortune, 13 Oct. 2025
  • FedEx will continue making regular deliveries, with all FedEx Ground, Freight, Trade Networks, Home Delivery, Office and Custom Critical running as usual.
    MSNBC Newsweek, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • Jordan and Egypt are expected to take the leading role in training and supervising the new police force.
    Tim Lister, CNN Money, 12 Oct. 2025
  • The network also recently hired an ombudsperson—someone with no experience supervising a newsroom and a background leading the right-wing Hudson Institute think tank—to assess complaints of biased programming.
    Time, Time, 7 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Operating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/operating. Accessed 18 Oct. 2025.

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