SLUMBERING Synonyms: 84 Similar and Opposite Words

slumbering 1 of 3

adjective

as in sleeping

being in a state of suspended consciousness made a comparison between the inattentive nation and a slumbering giant

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slumbering

2 of 3

noun

as in slumber

a natural periodic loss of consciousness during which the body restores itself my peaceful slumbering was interrupted by a ring of the doorbell

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slumbering

3 of 3

verb

present participle of slumber

as in resting

to be in a state of sleep she slumbered for hours while the train rolled on

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as in napping

to sleep lightly or briefly slumbering restlessly in the tropical heat

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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 slumbering

Adjective

Flat, slow, even sleepier than the slumbering crowd that had come to see him. — Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 9 Sep. 2026 The fireworks came instead from the Dodgers' slumbering offense, which awoke with Max Muncy's three-run double and Freddie Freeman's RBI single after Skubal departed. — ABC News, 11 Aug. 2026 The first murder is a girl slicing into her slumbering mother’s neck with a hacksaw; then her brother pounds his father’s face in with a baseball bat. — Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 4 Aug. 2026 The shorthanded goal seemed to wake the slumbering Ducks, with Gauthier scoring on a power play 37 seconds later to halve the lead and become the first Duck with 40 goals in a season since Corey Perry in 2013-14. — Los Angeles Times, 13 Apr. 2026 Transform a slumbering downtown into a bustling business sector. — Connor Letourneau, San Francisco Chronicle, 28 Mar. 2026 The supermassive black hole sitting at the heart of our galaxy is considered to be a slumbering giant. — Robert Lea, Space.com, 8 Jan. 2026 Trump revived a slumbering American electorate and drove record turnout, winning and losing; Mamdani won more votes than any modern mayor. — Ben Smith, semafor.com, 10 Nov. 2025 Along the way, the protagonist must also find a way to lift the curse on his eternally slumbering friend, who happens to be the prince. — PC Magazine, 16 Oct. 2025

Verb

In particular, the image of the sickly, slumbering child recurs throughout Marcon’s work. — Matthew McLean, Artforum, 22 Sep. 2026 The winter months pass, long nights, a bomb cyclone that buries my basement windows in snow and leaves me to lurk in the dark like a slumbering bear, and then spring arrives abrupt and clanging and golden. — Brian Laidlaw, Longreads, 1 Sep. 2026 In other words, the long-slumbering giant in the US space industry may finally be waking up. — Eric Berger, ArsTechnica, 6 Aug. 2026 Their football was slumbering, stuttering. — Amy Lawrence, New York Times, 31 May 2026 And amazingly, photographs of them have been slumbering in archives or circulating unidentified for almost a century. — Glenn Kurtz, Time, 28 Mar. 2026 Others showed baby Spero clasping his tiny hand around Graham's finger and slumbering with a smile on his face. — Ryan Coleman, Entertainment Weekly, 13 Mar. 2026 One of the men set fire to the slumbering victim’s clothes, causing a small blaze, police said. — Rocco Parascandola, New York Daily News, 3 Mar. 2026 The world's largest acidic geyser has begun erupting again in Yellowstone after slumbering for over five years, the national park said Monday. — Kerry Breen, CBS News, 3 Mar. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for slumbering

Adjective

An autopsy showed that the infant died from asphyxiation secondary to a co-sleeping/overlay event with an unsafe sleeping environment.

— Laura Bauer, Kansas City Star, 26 Feb. 2026

Definition of sleeping

Noun

Above-average rainfall in June and August, along with several cold fronts sweeping across the region, woke the seeds from a lengthy slumber to transform the landscape.

— Daisy Dobrijevic, Space.com, 24 Sep. 2026
If only professional old salt Wyck (Stephen Root) would quit with the doomsday prophecies about the fog being a sign of the island waking from malevolent slumber.

— Culture Critic, Los Angeles Times, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of slumber

Verb

That first reactor is already resting at a shipyard, ready for installation into the ship’s hull.

— Aman Tripathi, Interesting Engineering, 25 Sep. 2026
The evidence Before resting their case, prosecutors said evidence showed that Kosowski had become obsessed with Cozzi.

— Natasha Holt, FOXNews.com, 23 Sep. 2026

Definition of resting

Verb

Andrew was napping on a couch in the family home when he was struck up to 11 times with a hatchet.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 4 Sep. 2026
Longer sleep duration was linked to about 16% higher odds, and daytime napping to about 14% higher odds.

— Samantha Agate, Miami Herald, 3 Sep. 2026

Definition of napping

Adjective

One burns the only copy of her sister’s precious handwritten manuscript; at least two others set houses on fire, one while her unsuspecting parents are still asleep inside.

— Hillary Busis, Vanity Fair, 25 Sep. 2026
Before couples give up and split into separate rooms, a growing lineup of snoring solutions is trying to keep both people in the same bed and both people actually asleep.

— Lauren Schuster, Sacbee.com, 24 Sep. 2026

Definition of asleep

Verb

Nothing etches itself in your heart quite like the memory of watching a pack of energetic African wild dogs frolicking, a lioness and her cubs dozing on the Kalahari with your own kids tucked in close.

— Kathryn Romeyn, Condé Nast Traveler, 30 June 2026
Victor Nicholas ended up dozing with his head on her shoulder.

— Alice Yin, Chicago Tribune, 28 May 2026

Definition of dozing

Adjective

Meanwhile, the current owner of the inn took her children to the farmers market in the square across from the dormant building every Saturday throughout their childhoods.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 23 Sep. 2026
Apply a summer-weight dormant oil to your pachysandra during the crawler stages for more control.

— Tim Johnson, Chicago Tribune, 20 Sep. 2026

Definition of dormant

Browse Nearby Words

slumberers

slumbering

slumberous

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Style

“Slumbering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/slumbering. Accessed 29 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of slumbering

adjective

noun

verb

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