as in fiddling (around)
to spend time in aimless activity
pottering around indoors on a rainy day
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pottering (around)
Verb
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Thanks for playing — and share your scores in the comments!—
Mark Cooper,
New York Times,
7 May 2026 -
Paul and Barlow spent several minutes in the second half playing in the frontcourt, giving Nurse options to switch seamlessly while playing small when other Sixers bigs dealt with foul trouble.—
Fiifi Frimpong,
New York Daily News,
7 May 2026
Verb
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Zeus did not approve of his daughter fooling around with this mortal roughneck hunter and put out a hit on Orion.—
Mike Lynch,
Twin Cities,
8 Mar. 2026
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The transition was rough for Ansari, who wasn’t fluent in English and often got in trouble for fooling around in school.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
7 Feb. 2026
Verb
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All of our memories are traveling the world, messing around, having fun, and being teenagers.—
Larisha Paul,
Rolling Stone,
30 Apr. 2026
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The Lakers weren’t messing around during the film sessions or practices.—
Broderick Turner,
Los Angeles Times,
20 Apr. 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
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Cite this Entry
“Pottering (around).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pottering%20%28around%29. Accessed 8 May. 2026.
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