STARING Synonyms: 34 Similar and Opposite Words

staring

verb

present participle of stare

as in gazing

to look long and hard in wonder or surprise her friends stared in disbelief upon seeing her walking arm in arm with her ex-husband

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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 staring Instead of everybody facing one direction staring at the DJ, Savage wants the environment to be about the ambiance, the music, and the people in the space, not just who’s playing. — Candace Hansen, Los Angeles Times, 8 Oct. 2026 The black-and-white illustration showed a mother kneeling on the frothing waves’ surface, staring into the face of her naked infant as the Virgin Mary towered above them both, attended by angels circling her head. — Ellen O’Connell Whittet, Literary Hub, 7 Oct. 2026 But a week or two later, instead of a lush, green carpet, you’re left staring at patchy, yellowing, or unchanged grass. — Jessica Safavimehr, Southern Living, 7 Oct. 2026 With the Seminoles staring at the end zone from the 4-yard line, Daniels faked the pitch left, kept the football and charged straight up the middle, steamrolling through Virginia safety Christian Ellis before crashing into the end zone. — Miami Herald, 4 Oct. 2026 Unable to sleep, the boy would be out on the deck, staring at the island city before him. — Rachel Heng, New Yorker, 4 Oct. 2026 More of the same people staring at the same problem in the same room. — Duncan Wardle, Forbes.com, 1 Oct. 2026 Imagine staring up at the stars through a skylight, a mug of chamomile in hand and a fire crackling in the wood stove. — Olivia Young, Travel + Leisure, 27 Sep. 2026 His life trajectory changed when one client, a woman in her 50s, tired of staring at the stark white demarcation line every three weeks, begged him to take her gray. — Maggie Ryan, Flow Space, 25 Sep. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for staring

Verb

Despite gazing at the ghostly presence in full, Bela’s parents don’t seem all that spooked, even when the young girl is tossed around like a rag doll during an anniversary gathering at their home.

— Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 8 Oct. 2026
The rooms Each of Jumeirah Al Naseem's 430 rooms comes with a generous balcony or terrace gazing over the resort grounds, or up at the Jumeirah Burj Al Arab.

— Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 6 Oct. 2026

Definition of gazing

Verb

Such an approach runs the risk of gawking at an unfamiliar people, their hegemonies and their ways of life, even with the best intentions.

— Siddhant Adlakha, Variety, 5 Sep. 2026
On most days the Jewel House in the Tower of London is packed with tourists gawking at the fabled British Crown Jewels.

— Hadley Hall Meares, Vanity Fair, 17 Aug. 2026

Definition of gawking

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star (in)

staring

staring down

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“Staring.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/staring. Accessed 14 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of staring

verb

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