as in lurking
to move about in a sly or secret manner
like a thief slinking about in the middle of the night
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Recent Examples of slinking
Once the performers appear, slinking in from the sides of the stage, the show firmly takes shape and eases smoothly from one episode from the Gospels to the next.
—
Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 3 May 2026
In the official teaser, Lowen is slinking around the Crawford family house wearing a silk robe while Verity is fast asleep in bed.
—Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 27 Apr. 2026
Psarras spends the majority of his time slinking through space, scanning the highly detailed living room of opulence for the next steps of Tony’s grisly plan (the varied set design, which includes some ingenious touches with translucent walls, is by Ron Gasparinetti) .
—David John Chávez, Mercury News, 27 Mar. 2026
And Taylor telegraphs this through every beguiling movement, sometimes slinking, other times exuding braggadocio.
—Angelica Jade Bastién, Vulture, 24 Nov. 2025
Either way, Invisigal is in the room listening to her friends debate her fate, noticeably slinking out as the door seemingly opens on its own.
—Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 13 Nov. 2025
When infertility came for me, my response was to pursue pregnancy with an ever-narrowing focus, incrementally eliminating everything else in my life—quitting my job, slinking away from friendships, disappearing from the wider world.
—Literary Hub, 22 Oct. 2025
With the same playfulness of her makeup, Woods slicked the body of her hair in a bun on top of her head; her caramel-colored curled ends slinking around.
—Kaleigh Werner, Footwear News, 16 Sep. 2025
Now summer is slinking off and autumn is rushing in, cool and a little wistful.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 6 Sep. 2025
Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 3 May 2026
In the official teaser, Lowen is slinking around the Crawford family house wearing a silk robe while Verity is fast asleep in bed.
—Rebecca Rubin, Variety, 27 Apr. 2026
Psarras spends the majority of his time slinking through space, scanning the highly detailed living room of opulence for the next steps of Tony’s grisly plan (the varied set design, which includes some ingenious touches with translucent walls, is by Ron Gasparinetti) .
—David John Chávez, Mercury News, 27 Mar. 2026
And Taylor telegraphs this through every beguiling movement, sometimes slinking, other times exuding braggadocio.
—Angelica Jade Bastién, Vulture, 24 Nov. 2025
Either way, Invisigal is in the room listening to her friends debate her fate, noticeably slinking out as the door seemingly opens on its own.
—Christopher Cruz, Rolling Stone, 13 Nov. 2025
When infertility came for me, my response was to pursue pregnancy with an ever-narrowing focus, incrementally eliminating everything else in my life—quitting my job, slinking away from friendships, disappearing from the wider world.
—Literary Hub, 22 Oct. 2025
With the same playfulness of her makeup, Woods slicked the body of her hair in a bun on top of her head; her caramel-colored curled ends slinking around.
—Kaleigh Werner, Footwear News, 16 Sep. 2025
Now summer is slinking off and autumn is rushing in, cool and a little wistful.
—Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 6 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for slinking
Verb
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The fungi are already lurking in your soil, just waiting for enough moisture to go into action.—
David Beaulieu,
The Spruce,
28 May 2026
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Every day for more than 30 years, NASA's iconic Hubble Space Telescope has plumbed the cosmos to unveil secrets and wonders lurking in every corner of the universe.—
Eric Lagatta,
USA Today,
28 May 2026
Verb
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Christie is preparing to launch a mysterious new line of suits, at a hundred thousand dollars apiece, a plan that the three women catch wind of when Corvette actually manages to get a foot in the door—by sneaking into Christie’s apartment.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
22 May 2026
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After about a year at the park and sneaking onto a field with American-style uprights at Kanda University, where some of his friends went to school, Matsuzawa wanted to make his project more serious.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
15 May 2026
Verb
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There is no coming back, and these Giants look plenty capable of slipping, stumbling or falling that low.—
Dieter Kurtenbach,
Mercury News,
27 May 2026
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Other sections take the hiker over loose sand and gravel, which can cause lots of slipping and sliding.—
John Meyer,
Denver Post,
26 May 2026
Verb
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However, Aaron Judge fired a pinpointed rocket to plate, where Austin Wells applied a bang-bang tag on a sliding Massey just in time.—
Gary Phillips,
New York Daily News,
28 May 2026
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Tire tread depth - Checking your tire tread before hitting the road is important, as low or no tread can lead to sliding.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
28 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Slinking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/slinking. Accessed 29 May. 2026.
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