as in gawking
to look long and hard in wonder or surprise
thoughtless drivers pausing on the highway to rubberneck at the accident
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in eavesdropping
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Recent Examples of rubbernecking
Nick Miller, New York Times, 22 Sep. 2025
Noun
Other tasty-looking ties include Red Bull Salzburg against Porto and, for fans of rubbernecking, Russell Martin’s latest chance to win over Rangers fans comes at home to Genk.
—Nick Miller, New York Times, 22 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rubbernecking
Verb
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But the cringe-comedy antics of the original NBC series landed far better in Season 3 than in Season 1, once audiences began to truly love the characters instead of just gawking at them.—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
3 Sep. 2025
-
Nunn has a divided audience, as the Baddies show is fueled with drama, with Jerry Springer style fights to keep viewers gawking.—
Nadja Sayej,
Forbes.com,
11 Aug. 2025
Noun
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The team’s three-year investigation found that roughly half of all geostationary satellite signals are left vulnerable to eavesdropping.—
Kaif Shaikh,
Interesting Engineering,
14 Oct. 2025
-
But recording a conversation that a person is not participating in violates the eavesdropping statute, Heath said.—
Nushrat Rahman,
Freep.com,
6 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Behind the glass doors of an unassuming building in Manhattan, staring across a shuttered print shop, a shadowy world stirred, coming alive with the flick of cards, the muted clink of glasses and the quiet hum of a dangerous secret.—
Alaa Elassar,
CNN Money,
27 Oct. 2025
-
Sean Monahan, Voronkov and others came up empty on point-blank opportunities that left them staring into the rafters or yelling at the ice in frustration.—
Aaron Portzline,
New York Times,
25 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
During Black’s Last Man Standing Match against Damian Priest, Vega made a crucial appearance, providing interference that allowed Black to secure the victory.—
Andrew Ravens,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Oct. 2025
-
Denver Broncos cornerback Riley Moss is one of the best in the NFL at his position, yet he has been flagged for defensive pass interference more than anyone in the league this season.—
Ryan Canfield,
FOXNews.com,
30 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
The footage shows a tabby cat gazing out the window with her back to the camera while a small gray-and-white kitten sits beside her.—
Lucy Notarantonio,
MSNBC Newsweek,
22 Oct. 2025
-
The final shot sees Tom gazing out the window as a curtain gently sways in the warm breeze.—
Joey Nolfi,
Entertainment Weekly,
20 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Thanks to a thorough investigation and questioning, this pedestrian was contacted on Interstate 580 after walking away from an earlier crash.—
Becca Longmire,
PEOPLE,
29 Oct. 2025
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Within the story, there’s no questioning of this tradition, feminist or otherwise — there’s only its pursuit and the esteem in which the onnagatas’ artistry is held.—
Sheri Linden,
HollywoodReporter,
29 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
The New Jersey native also teased some new music on the way after some prying from Hudson.—
Michael Saponara,
Billboard,
28 Oct. 2025
-
The prying end also serves as a nail puller, box cutter and bottle opener.—
Ben Coxworth
October 07,
New Atlas,
7 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Rubbernecking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rubbernecking. Accessed 3 Nov. 2025.
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