1
as in drinking
to take in (something liquid) through small openings
the ground quickly sponged up the much-needed rain
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in begging
to live by relying on someone else's generosity or hospitality without sharing in the cost or responsibility
she's been sponging off of her friends while she tries to land an entry-level job on Wall Street
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sponging
Verb
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Staying active, meditating, drinking plenty of water and getting a full night’s sleep.—
Jackie Fields,
PEOPLE,
6 Nov. 2025 -
Snag drinking glasses for 50% off and organic cotton cloth napkins for more than half off, plus check out big savings on entire dinnerware sets and more.—
Paige Bennett,
Better Homes & Gardens,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
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After making its first appearance at the 2024 Live Más Live event, the dessert quickly built a cult-like reputation online, with fans sharing mockups, memes and petitions begging for a real release.—
Moná Thomas,
PEOPLE,
6 Nov. 2025
-
Yep, the 115 is the go-to when the faucet’s turned on and the trees are begging for tracks.—
Kimberly Beekman,
Outside,
4 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Under the proposal, districts such as CA-01, CA-03, CA-22, CA-41 and CA-48 are set to shift by shedding conservative-leaning counties and absorbing more Democratic-leaning areas.—
Martha McHardy,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 Nov. 2025
-
González de Arrieta emphasized the importance of developing new coatings with better light-absorbing properties for solar towers.—
Atharva Gosavi,
Interesting Engineering,
4 Nov. 2025
Verb
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The specter of freeloading corporations using more space, water, and energy for AI processing has defined the race for the 30th House of Delegates district, well outside DC.—
David Weigel,
semafor.com,
13 Oct. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Sponging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sponging. Accessed 9 Nov. 2025.
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