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

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for skedaddling
  1. retreating
  2. fleeing
  3. flying
  4. bolting
  5. running
  6. escaping
Verb
  • The pope paused for a moment and waved to the crowd before retreating into his apartment in the Apostolic Palace.
    — Colleen Barry, Chicago Tribune, 18 Oct. 2026
  • In a world riven by democratic backsliding and polluted with AI slop, there’s something seductive about the idea of retreating to a wild, unnavigable place where no one can follow you—because you’ll be submerged up to your eyeballs.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of retreating
Verb
  • Instead of stopping to help Batani-Khalfani, police alleged that Cardenas continued driving, fleeing the scene of the hit-and-run crash.
    — Dean Fioresi, CBS News, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Hollywood jobs have been fleeing for years for cheaper filming locales, and the restaurant industry has been shaken by mounting closures.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 21 Oct. 2026
Definition of fleeing
Verb
  • D’haene said the company also wants to identify practical applications beyond leisure flying.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 21 Oct. 2026
  • For many years people believed that light was made out of particles flying in straight rays.
    — Philipp Strasberg, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of flying
Verb
  • Captured on video surveillance cameras, the three thieves were seen grabbing hundreds of trading cards and bolting from the shop in less than 10 minutes.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 20 Oct. 2026
  • Instead of bolting off the line when the gun sounded, Garret, Retzlaff and about a dozen other girls walked a few meters and then left the course, while the male athlete took off.
    — Ryan Canfield OutKick, FOXNews.com, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of bolting
Verb
  • On the other, evidence suggests this pair of habitual time-wasters were commonly found on the floor, running laughter through a Yamaha SPX90 effects processor for kicks and strumming the same note for 40-odd minutes.
    — Gabriel Szatan, Pitchfork, 18 Oct. 2026
  • Albert Ramdin, secretary general of the Organization of American States, also has said that candidates with criminal ties should be barred from running.
    — Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of running
Verb
  • As the comet rotates, fresh ice enters the sunlight and sublimates; the escaping gas then drags entrained dust particles away from the nucleus.
    — Joe Rao, Space.com, 13 Oct. 2026
  • What better way to pass the hours than by escaping into a good book?
    — Hannah Jackson, Vogue, 13 Oct. 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 23 Oct. 2026.

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