skedaddling

verb

present participle of skedaddle
as in retreating
to hasten away from something dangerous or frightening we skedaddled as soon as we saw the snake entering our campsite

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for skedaddling
  1. retreating
  2. fleeing
  3. flying
  4. bolting
  5. running
  6. escaping
Verb
  • It’s made up of nine river rooms and three junior suites, so staying here feels more like retreating to a private waterside residence than checking into a city stay.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 18 Aug. 2026
  • Yet some of retail’s fastest-growing companies are not retreating from physical stores.
    — Ayşe Çetinel, Harvard Business Review, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of retreating
Verb
  • On top of that, the Iranian airspace was closed to all flights during the bombings and Iranians were fleeing the country.
    — CBS News, CBS News, 20 Aug. 2026
  • Jacobo stopped the attack and approached Overstreet before fleeing to his car, prosecutors said.
    — City News Service, Daily News, 19 Aug. 2026
Definition of fleeing
Verb
  • On the other is a relief depiction of a Kremlin in flames, with a drone flying over it.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 19 Aug. 2026
  • Over the coming months, avionics, scientific instruments and thermal insulation will gradually transform the frame into the flying science laboratory destined for the outer solar system.
    — Jamie Carter, Forbes.com, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of flying
Verb
  • Above all, embed accuracy into explainability rather than bolting it on afterward.
    — Sriram Bhargav Madhav, Forbes.com, 17 Aug. 2026
  • Very hot weather encourages bolting, or the production of flowers and eventually seeds, which can draw energy away from leaf production.
    — Alexandra Jones, The Spruce, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of bolting
Verb
  • Mendoza saw the defense was in man and made an aggressive decision to throw to Deven Thompkins running a corner route.
    — Ted Nguyen, New York Times, 18 Aug. 2026
  • But despite resigning less than six months ago, Cherfilus-McCormick is running again this year.
    — Caroline Linton, CBS News, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of running
Verb
  • Wars come and go, Napoleon rises and falls and these two men remain prisoners of a beef neither seems capable of escaping.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 20 Aug. 2026
  • Jonathan Bowlan allowed a single and a walk in the eighth before escaping with help from Brandon Marsh’s catch of a foul pop amid the fans in left field.
    — Miami Herald, Miami Herald, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of escaping
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

skedaddles
skedaddling
skeletal
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Skedaddling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/skedaddling. Accessed 22 Aug. 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 august

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

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

How to Pronounce the Trickiest Menu Items

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Aug. 21

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

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

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
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
alt-684346df967d5
Add A Letter Quiz Pick the letter that goes in the same spot in fou...
See All