RIDDLING Synonyms: 49 Similar and Opposite Words

riddling

verb

Definition of riddling

present participle of riddle

as in drilling

to make a hole or series of holes in several signs along the highway were riddled by buckshot

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in penetrating

to spread throughout the newspaper exposé revealed a gaming commission that is riddled with corruption

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 riddling After riddling the vehicle with bullets and receiving backup from the 400 Mawozo gang, the gunmen set the vehicle on fire with an explosive device, several sources told the Herald. — Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 22 Oct. 2026 But asteroids and comets have also bombarded Mercury, riddling it with impact craters, much like the pockmarked surface of Earth’s moon. — Ashley Strickland, CNN Money, 10 Sep. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for riddling

Verb

The contracts involve subsea production systems and pipelines, a floating control unit and drilling rig services.

— ABC News, ABC News, 5 Nov. 2026
Guys are just drilling things, getting familiar with how guys play.

— Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 3 Nov. 2026

Definition of drilling

Verb

The process is used to transform raw, localized ingredients — such as rice, but also honey and soybeans — into more potent but non-irritating formulas that target cellular turnover and provide deep hydration by penetrating the skin more effectively.

— Kati Chitrakorn, Vogue, 30 Oct. 2026
The Soviet Union, for instance, gained nuclear weapons in part by penetrating the Manhattan Project; more recently, China stole secrets related to the F-22 and F-35 stealth fighter jets and the C-17 cargo plane.

— Sam Mullins, Foreign Affairs, 28 Oct. 2026

Definition of penetrating

Verb

And over there—the six sky-piercing minarets of the 400-year-old Blue Mosque.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 6 Nov. 2026
When Rafael Rodríguez Rapún (Miguel Bernardeau), a Republican freedom fighter with piercing eyes and a lower abdominal wound, is wheeled into the infirmary, Sebastián is assigned to watch over him and extract information.

— Justin Chang, New Yorker, 3 Nov. 2026

Definition of piercing

Verb

The threat of shattered glass if the bottle breaks, the subsequent odor suffusing all the items in your carryon, liquids seeping dangerously close to electronics—none of it sounds like a good idea.

— Chloe Schama, Vogue, 1 Sep. 2026
But Pete took the idea one step further, taking the organization’s iconic symbol — the star — and suffusing it with a deeper meaning.

— Rustin Dodd, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2026

Definition of suffusing

Verb

Debris landed on their roof, puncturing it so that rainwater was flowing into their living room.

— Angie DiMichele, Sun Sentinel, 11 Nov. 2026
In fact, Fielder says, Blaine was literally stabbing his hand, puncturing his own flesh to create the illusion of an illusion.

— Naomi Fry, New Yorker, 17 Oct. 2026

Definition of puncturing

Verb

But with just a step to her other side or a shake of her head on stage, the near-auburn shade moves to the forefront, with dimensional pieces of golden blonde poking through.

— Emily Tannenbaum, Glamour, 30 Oct. 2026
The smallest of the dogs, a fluffy little white-and-gray thing, is poking out of a red box on the dog keeper’s lap.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 28 Oct. 2026