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
Her music quickly gained recognition in Canada, earning her a Juno Award in 1989 for most promising female vocalist. — Mitchell Peters, Billboard, 4 Oct. 2026 The success for the rerelease is a promising sign for the big-budget Doomsday. — Ryan Gajewski, HollywoodReporter, 4 Oct. 2026
Verb
With the company saddled with $80 billion in debt and promising to cut $6 billion in costs, thousands of workers are expected to be let go. — Dominic Patten, Deadline, 6 Oct. 2026 What Could Be Next The next phase of the gut-health trend may be less about promising a ‘reset’ and more about showing what these retreats can actually measure. — Ashley Lynch, Sacbee.com, 6 Oct. 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
  • Le is particularly fond of the store’s Thai green bananas, which remain bright green even when fully ripe and develop an intensely sweet flavor.
    — Sara Rosenthal, Denver Post, 11 Oct. 2026
  • Leaning into its history, Kessler has outfitted the hotel with installations that channel the Jurassic period, including life size dinosaur skeletons and fossils, backlit in a range of bright colors, displayed throughout the walls.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 11 Oct. 2026
Definition of bright
Adjective
  • What is encouraging about the Guardians is that all of their runs in that game came from hits that stayed in the yard.
    — OutKick, FOXNews.com, 8 Oct. 2026
  • Still, there were encouraging signs from the offense, particularly in the running game.
    — Alejandro Hernandez, Miami Herald, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of encouraging
Verb
  • Seminole’s rural boundary is a hot political topic, with nearly every candidate running for office in Seminole this election year vowing to protect the area mostly east of the Econlockhatchee River and covering about one third of the county.
    — Martin E. Comas, The Orlando Sentinel, 8 Oct. 2026
  • The future for national cinema is bleak under a potential Flávio Bolsonaro presidency, with the candidate vowing to mimic virtually all of his father’s policies—and tighten some even further.
    — Rafa Sales Ross, Variety, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of vowing
Verb
  • The initiative has not yet produced a universal virtual cell capable of accurately predicting arbitrary biological responses.
    — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 7 Oct. 2026
  • That's a much different call than predicting Micron will earn dramatically more profits than the current Wall Street consensus.
    — Zev Fima, CNBC, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of predicting
Adjective
  • She’s mentored by Jae (Major Curda), a member of Ellora’s municipal Bending Brigade, and his captain Karthik (Akshay Khanna), who has a more optimistic view of the Avatar’s potential than those that blame her for ending the world.
    — Alison Herman, Variety, 9 Oct. 2026
  • Zhang plays optimistic puzzle master Florence, and Sula is Conrad’s estranged daughter and criminal psychologist Astrid.
    — Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of optimistic
Adjective
  • And because Alta sits at a higher elevation in the Wasatch, a favorable shift in the storm track could quickly turn the season around.
    — Jessica Chapel, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 Oct. 2026
  • Among his party, Fetterman is performing even worse, with 69% of Democrats having an unfavorable opinion of the senator compared to 13% who have a favorable opinion.
    — Claire Carter, The Washington Examiner, 7 Oct. 2026
Definition of favorable
Verb
  • The league on Monday suspended line judge Jeff Seeman for two games for swearing at Arizona’s Trey McBride and referee Adrian Hill for one game for yelling and gesturing at Minnesota’s Eric Wilson.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 6 Oct. 2026
  • The league on Monday suspended line judge Jeff Seeman for two games for swearing at Arizona's Trey McBride and referee Adrian Hill for one game for yelling and gesturing at Minnesota's Eric Wilson.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 6 Oct. 2026
Definition of swearing
Verb
  • As the midterms near, Republicans have started warning in sometimes dire terms about the possible repercussions.
    — Theodoric Meyer, Washington Post, 11 Oct. 2026
  • The court documents also note that Mosleh made the sale of the products to a confidential informant after Strang's and Hamilton's deaths, even warning the informant that people had been dying from the product.
    — Robert McGreevy, FOXNews.com, 11 Oct. 2026
Definition of warning

Browse Nearby Words

promises
promising
promisingly
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Cite this Entry

“Promising.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/promising. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

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