promising 1 of 2

adjective

ˈprä-mə-siŋ How to pronounce promising (audio)
Definition of promisingnext
1
as in bright
having qualities which inspire hope a promising writer who just may write the great American novel someday

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in encouraging
pointing toward a happy outcome all the signs for the new business are promising

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

promising

2 of 2

verb

present participle of promise
1
as in vowing
to make a solemn declaration of intent they promised to keep in touch with us after they moved away

Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in predicting
to show signs of a favorable or successful outcome given the cast, the new sitcom promises to be an excellent show

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 promising
Adjective
Companies like Google and Snap are already exploring this promising enterprise market. — Cortney Harding, Forbes.com, 8 July 2026 The Wa-Lawra gold belt in northwest Ghana, where the Black Volta mine is located, is considered one of the country’s most promising undeveloped gold belts. — Alexis Akwagyiram, semafor.com, 8 July 2026
Verb
Platner appealed to his supporters by promising political change and addressing issues such as affordability. — Brittney Melton, NPR, 9 July 2026 Her challenger, progressive Abdul El-Sayed, is betting Michigan’s populist streak will favor an outsider promising Medicare for All, campaign finance reform and a break from business-as-usual Democratic politics. — Joey Cappelletti, Los Angeles Times, 9 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for promising
Recent Examples of Synonyms for promising
  1. bright
  2. encouraging
  3. vowing
  4. predicting
  5. optimistic
  6. favorable
  7. swearing
  8. warning
Adjective
  • The White Sox are winning, and the future is suddenly bright.
    — Jon Greenberg, New York Times, 12 July 2026
  • The bright and airy Hotel San Luis Obispo (Hotel SLO,) which calls itself a modern urban resort, boasts The Ox and Anchor restaurant which has earned a Michelin Key.
    — Michael Goldstein, Forbes.com, 11 July 2026
Definition of bright
Adjective
  • The encouraging sign is that AI can now help police what AI builders are doing through agent simulation, anomaly detection and better observability.
    — Jason Andersen, Forbes.com, 8 July 2026
  • This convergence is a very encouraging sign, providing the first footprint of a structural trend change and indicating that the selling pressure from the recent rug pull is finally exhausting itself.
    — Nishant Pant, CNBC, 7 July 2026
Definition of encouraging
Verb
  • Staging an Ultimate Fighting Championship event in front of the White House last month lost the company $30 million and left UFC president Dana White vowing to never stage something like that again.
    — Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 8 July 2026
  • In March, South Korean President Lee Jae Myung warned on X that oil refiners and corporations engaged in price-fixing would be held accountable, vowing to deploy all lawful measures against unethical business practices.
    — Jenny Lee, CNBC, 6 July 2026
Definition of vowing
Verb
  • Many climate scientists are predicting that 2027 — because of pent up heat — will break the 2024 global high temperature record set by the last strong El Nino.
    — Seth Borenstein, Fortune, 9 July 2026
  • This independence from linear order is incompatible with an LLM’s fundamental purpose of predicting the next value in a linear sequence.
    — Benjamin Skuse, IEEE Spectrum, 9 July 2026
Definition of predicting
Adjective
  • Instead, some slopes are resorting to creating snow artificially, while hotels and restaurants do their best to stay optimistic.
    — Cristopher Ulloa, CNN Money, 11 July 2026
  • His eight turnovers reflected the rookie’s inevitable learning curve, but did little to diminish the flashes that have the Jazz so optimistic about the future.
    — Tony Jones, New York Times, 10 July 2026
Definition of optimistic
Adjective
  • Jewish adults, who overwhelmingly skew Democratic, have a slightly more favorable opinion of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, an outspoken critic of Israel, than of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the poll found.
    — Melanie Lidman, Los Angeles Times, 8 July 2026
  • His research has found that while nostalgia is associated with improvements in social connectedness and favorable responses to questions about new innovations like AI, declinism has the opposite associations.
    — Markham Heid, Time, 8 July 2026
Definition of favorable
Verb
  • Ormund buckles easily enough, dropping to his knee and swearing fealty to Daenerys.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 6 July 2026
  • Social media videos show drivers aghast at the lines or swearing at empty gas pumps and rising prices.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 1 July 2026
Definition of swearing
Verb
  • The California Highway Patrol issued a SigAlert, warning drivers to expect delays of more than two hours as the two to four northbound lanes will be blocked until further notice.
    — Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 7 July 2026
  • The Texas Department of State Health Services posted a health advisory in May warning that because the eggs shed from the body inconsistently, doctors may need to do as many as three tests spaced 24 hours apart to make an accurate diagnosis.
    — Brenda Goodman, CNN Money, 7 July 2026
Definition of warning

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promising
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Cite this Entry

“Promising.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/promising. Accessed 13 Jul. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of promising for Spanish Speakers

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