pullulating

verb

present participle of pullulate
as in bursting
to be copiously supplied a tough city neighborhood that has a reputation for pullulating with prostitutes and petty criminals

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for pullulating
  1. bursting
  2. buzzing
  3. bulging
Verb
  • There aren’t many good new comedies bursting onto the scene these days, but this is a worthwhile one to binge.
    — Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 7 Sep. 2026
  • Desperation is the defining mood, mostly sublimated and sometimes bursting through the surface, as when a man demanding his savings threatens self-immolation at the bank.
    — Sheri Linden, HollywoodReporter, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of bursting
Verb
  • Jourdan Rodrigue has a list of 15 young players the NFL is buzzing about before the regular season starts.
    — Chris Branch, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026
  • In eighth grade at Hickory Creek, Ross already had high school track coaches buzzing about her.
    — Jeff Vorva, Chicago Tribune, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of buzzing
Verb
  • At the end of his second-round match against Hubert Hurkacz, an eye-bulging celebration followed a relentless performance against a very tricky opponent.
    — Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026
  • Initially treated almost as an afterthought, Bonta’s antitrust lawsuit has become a major obstacle to Ellison’s ambitions and a source of neck-bulging outrage among Ellison’s supporters.
    — Gene Maddaus, Variety, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of bulging
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.

Browse Nearby Words

pullulates
pullulating
pull up
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Pullulating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pullulating. Accessed 13 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of shofar

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Words from the 'Odyssey'

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
funny guinea pig in glasses reading a book
Challenging Words You Should Know Vol 2 Words to the wise
See All