slithering

present participle of slither
as in creeping
to move slowly with the body close to the ground a snake slithering through the garden

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of slithering Here are seven solutions to keep these animals slithering past your yard. Nadia Hassani, The Spruce, 6 July 2026 There are anywhere between 100,000 and 300,000 invasive Burmese pythons (Python bivittatus) currently slithering through the Florida Everglades. Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 2 July 2026 North Carolina is crawling, or perhaps slithering, with copperheads. Eva Flowe, Charlotte Observer, 22 June 2026 On land, movements range from crawling and slithering (worms, mollusks, arthropods, snakes) to walking and running. Literary Hub, 22 June 2026 His wife, Cheryl Hines, is heard off camera asking him to be careful with the slithering reptiles. Marina Watts, Entertainment Weekly, 26 May 2026 But his idealized vision of a past paradise of social cohesion that late-stage capitalism destroyed doesn’t reckon with the snakes that were always there in this imaginary Eden, including a personal betrayal that’s close to home and only comes slithering out in a moment of drunken weakness. Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 22 May 2026 Embiid is waiting to impede Bridges, but Bridges doesn’t even touch him, instead slithering around his left hip. Fred Katz, New York Times, 15 May 2026 As Seth seethes about his separation from his home country (and the family fortune), Arias interweaves a backstory involving assassination, undisclosed parentage and (as the title suggests) the perilous creatures slithering across the landscape. Michael Schaub, Los Angeles Times, 12 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for slithering
Verb
  • Many of the dummies evolved admirably over the competition’s final hour, complete with fine laugh lines and subtle details like creeping wisps of nose hair, which were gingerly applied with tweezers and Krazy Glue.
    John Semley, Harpers Magazine, 28 July 2026
  • The surge in short interest coincides with a decidedly bearish sentiment creeping into what had been a relentlessly bullish AI trade.
    Allison Morrow, CNN Money, 23 July 2026
Verb
  • They’re wrapped around thumbnails, crawling up ring fingernails, and shining with 3D dewdrops.
    Ariel Wodarcyk, InStyle, 27 July 2026
  • Fort Hood, Texas, one of the Army's largest bases, has closed one of its dining facilities after a video circulating on X appeared to show dozens of roaches crawling across the walls of the facility's kitchen.
    Steven Beynon, ABC News, 23 July 2026
Verb
  • Towering over the Central Business District and the snaking ribbon of the Waller Creek Greenbelt Trail, this 37-story hotel stands out amidst the Austin skyline.
    Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 24 July 2026
  • Butter & Cream A certain national chain may be just around the corner in Decatur, but that doesn’t stop lines from snaking out the door at Butter & Cream.
    Lia Picard, AJC.com, 22 July 2026
Verb
  • Originally housing offices, its heyday in Detroit’s industrial age was brief, sliding into decline in the 1960s and ultimately going vacant.
    Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 30 July 2026
  • In the meantime, relatively strong iPhone and Mac sales in this quarter didn’t stop Apple’s stock value from sliding around eight percent in after-hours trading.
    Samuel Axon, ArsTechnica, 30 July 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Slithering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/slithering. Accessed 2 Aug. 2026.

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