soaking (up)

verb

present participle of soak (up)
as in drinking
to take in (something liquid) through small openings this sponge should soak up the spilled juice very nicely

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for soaking (up)
  1. drinking
  2. absorbing
  3. taking up
Verb
  • Public health officials have cautioned for years that older adults are drinking more, and more often.
    — Paula Span, Miami Herald, 3 Sep. 2026
  • This week’s newsletter looks at why people are drinking less alcohol, how the world judges America and how many people use chatbots like a friend.
    — Scott Clement, Washington Post, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of drinking
Verb
  • Beyond its vast holdings of US debt, Japan remains one of the premier foreign buyers in global sovereign bond markets, with government debt from major European economies and Australia historically absorbing substantial Japanese capital inflows.
    — , CNBC, 9 Sep. 2026
  • As a result, each shell collapses sequentially, gradually absorbing and dissipating the kinetic energy.
    — Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 9 Sep. 2026
Definition of absorbing
Verb
  • Bi is at work on a black gown with a veil, which Christian worries is taking up too much time.
    — Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 4 Sep. 2026
  • Engineers at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) are developing a new type of heatsink that could help electronics manage short bursts of intense heat while taking up significantly less space and weight.
    — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of taking up
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

soaking
soaking (up)
soaks
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Soaking (up).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/soaking%20%28up%29. Accessed 11 Sep. 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 patina

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

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

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary

Words from the 'Odyssey'

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Back to School Vocabulary
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
funny guinea pig in glasses reading a book
Challenging Words You Should Know Vol 2 Words to the wise
See All