as in rational
having the ability to reason
judged by the courts not to be a reasoning being who could be held accountable for his crimes
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in logic
the thought processes that have been established as leading to valid solutions to problems
your reasoning here is faulty, for although all wives are spouses, not all spouses are wives
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in understanding
to form an opinion or reach a conclusion through reasoning and information
she reasoned that since all of the cakes were on sale for the same price, she might as well pick the biggest one
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in arguing
to state (something) as a reason in support of or against something under consideration
he tried to reason that no one in their right mind would buy his brother's old video games, but they were put on the online auction anyway
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of reasoning
Dave Smith, Fortune, 2 Oct. 2025
Some will excel at coding, others at reasoning, and still others at data analysis or creative writing.
—Marco Argenti, Time, 2 Oct. 2025
Yun Li, CNBC, 19 Sep. 2025
The group filed for an injunction on June 27 reasoning that the case would go their way in the end.
—Rachel Royster, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for reasoning
Noun
Those include a pair of open and freely available artificial intelligence models that can mimic the human process of reasoning, months after China’s DeepSeek gained global attention with its own open software.
—Dave Smith, Fortune, 2 Oct. 2025
Some will excel at coding, others at reasoning, and still others at data analysis or creative writing.
—Marco Argenti, Time, 2 Oct. 2025
Verb
Earlier this year, Norway's sovereign wealth fund proposed switching to semiannual reporting, reasoning that lengthening the time frame would allow companies to focus on the longer term.
—Yun Li, CNBC, 19 Sep. 2025
The group filed for an injunction on June 27 reasoning that the case would go their way in the end.
—Rachel Royster, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 15 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for reasoning
Recent Examples of Synonyms for reasoning
Adjective
-
Every argument has a rational, emotional, and rhetorical component.—
Louisa Thomas,
New Yorker,
5 Oct. 2025
-
If the court concludes that conversion therapy is conduct, then the Colorado law is subject to the same standard used in Skrmetti – rational basis – and likely will survive.—
Timothy R. Holbrook,
The Conversation,
2 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
The beginning of a solution, Zionism’s dismantling, requires a more granular understanding of its founding logic.—
Book Marks
October 2,
Literary Hub,
2 Oct. 2025
-
Redefining Black Love While the financial logic is clear, this trend is also cultural.—
Essence,
Essence,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
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And without understanding these models at a deep level, they can’t be trusted to do anything where failure is not an option.—
Reed Albergotti,
semafor.com,
1 Oct. 2025
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While there’s no single biomarker that can perfectly predict disease or mortality, there are many that reign supreme in understanding women’s overall health and disease risk.—
Alexa Mikhail,
Flow Space,
1 Oct. 2025
Verb
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For decades, DeLodder said, hospitals have quelled the establishment of freestanding birthing centers by arguing against their necessity.—
Killian Baarlaer,
Louisville Courier Journal,
3 Oct. 2025
-
The budget director wrote the project’s chapter on the Executive Office of the President, arguing that the bureaucracy is riddled with inefficiencies and corruption.—
Emily Hallas,
The Washington Examiner,
2 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Millions grew up less intelligent, more violent, poorer, and more likely to die from heart disease, stroke, and kidney failure.—
Tom Frieden,
Big Think,
30 Sep. 2025
-
But there were circumstances that could allow the highly intelligent Leland to have a better life.—
Janelle Griffith,
PEOPLE,
30 Sep. 2025
Noun
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Voters also tend to lean more nationalist and conservative during economic downturns, said Hajime Kidera, a professor at Meiji University’s School of Political Science and Economics – which is one reason Abe was so popular during the post-recession early 2010s.—
Jessie Yeung,
CNN Money,
3 Oct. 2025
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The executive branch does not normally use the shutdown as a reason for layoffs.—
Sarah D. Wire,
USA Today,
3 Oct. 2025
Verb
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In the years since, Wickelgren, Kass and others have reframed a host of other enumerative problems using motivic homotopy theory, deriving the relevant quadratic forms in various number systems.—
Joseph Howlett,
Quanta Magazine,
26 Sep. 2025
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About half of the company’s sales are direct-to-consumer, deriving from the stores as well as Rails’ e-commerce site.—
Jean E. Palmieri,
Footwear News,
22 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Yet Harris discovered that being a good soldier doesn’t necessarily help when the vice president is contending for the highest elective office in the land.—
Jeremy Lott,
The Washington Examiner,
3 Oct. 2025
-
As the New York Knicks gear up for what could be a title-contending season in 2025-26, the head coach that led them to their most success this century was spotted several time zones away.—
Alex Kirschenbaum,
MSNBC Newsweek,
1 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Reasoning.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/reasoning. Accessed 7 Oct. 2025.
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