shrugging

Definition of shruggingnext
present participle of shrug

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for shrugging
Verb
  • Blair is at the center of a lawsuit involving allegations that Virginia school officials made decisions about Blair's well-being and gender identity without informing the then-14-year-old's parents.
    Ayana Archie, NPR, 24 Feb. 2026
  • Late last night, New Yorkers received an emergency alert last night, informing them that there’s a driving ban.
    Peter White, Deadline, 23 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • Chrome filigree details outline white French tips, nodding to the swoon-worthy Edwardian costuming in period pieces like Bridgerton.
    Ariel Wodarcyk, InStyle, 23 Feb. 2026
  • Cameras showed audience members nodding along, shaking their shoulders and otherwise getting into the music.
    Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 22 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • The introduction of rats, dogs, cats and stoats, as well as hunting by people and destruction of native forest habitats, drove species of the country’s flourishing flightless birds — the kakapo among them — to near or complete extinction.
    Charlotte Graham-McLay, Los Angeles Times, 24 Feb. 2026
  • The introduction of rats, dogs, cats and stoats, as well as hunting by people and destruction of native forest habitats, drove species of the country’s flourishing flightless birds — the kakapo among them — to near or complete extinction.
    ABC News, ABC News, 23 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • In relating her story this way, Gisèle is restoring to the record her waking life.
    Gaby Wood, Vogue, 21 Feb. 2026
  • Morello himself serves as kind of a guide in the film, relating his own love of metal growing up as a Black kid in a conservative, ethnically homogeneous suburb of Chicago.
    Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 19 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • Jenni also testified Tuesday, telling the court that her father and brother would sometimes fight, physically and verbally.
    Mirna Alsharif, NBC news, 24 Feb. 2026
  • Cordial countenance is quiet leadership, the atmosphere shift that makes truth telling possible.
    Adam Dietz, Big Think, 24 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • In preschool, he was given a wordless role as Farmer McGregor in a school production of Peter Rabbit and began hamming it up, counting the missing tomatoes and gesticulating at his nemesis rabbit.
    Kathryn VanArendonk, Vulture, 26 Feb. 2026
  • Their remaining team-mates applauded the away enclosure, but many in that section were gesticulating their disdain.
    Roshane Thomas, New York Times, 25 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • The nearly three-hour meeting ends with Rihanna signing vinyl copies of her Loud, Music of the Sun and Good Girl Gone Bad LPs.
    Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 27 Feb. 2026
  • Frankly speaking, Sullivan and Hafley would be putting their reputations on the line by signing Willis, who has never been a full-time starter.
    Chris Perkins, Sun Sentinel, 27 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • Years later, after spending time investing in and advising service companies, he felt drawn back to operating a business built around people and community presence.
    William Jones, USA Today, 24 Feb. 2026
  • Airports across the Northeast shared updates on social media about air travel disruptions because of the storm, advising travelers to check with their airlines about the status of their flights.
    Chantelle Lee, Time, 23 Feb. 2026
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.

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Cite this Entry

“Shrugging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shrugging. Accessed 3 Mar. 2026.

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