stewing 1 of 2

adjective

as in fretting

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

stewing

2 of 2

verb

present participle of stew
1
as in boiling
to cook in a liquid heated to the point that it gives off steam stew the chicken till tender, and then remove the meat from the bones

Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in worrying
to experience concern or anxiety stop stewing over that game and just try to do better next time

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 stewing
Verb
Idda takes an epic approach to unearthing the packed layers of a stewing friendship. — Zac Ntim, Deadline, 21 July 2026 Roasting, stewing, baking—those are all great ways to make okra. — Kimberly Holland, Southern Living, 13 July 2026 This idea’s been stewing in my brain ever since. — Olivier Lafontant, Pitchfork, 9 June 2026 Something about her kept stewing in my head. — Mary Ann Grossmann, Twin Cities, 1 June 2026 The Detroit Red Wings sat on the bench, stewing in stunned silence, after their latest loss sealed their fate as a franchise relegated to watching the NHL playoffs on TV. — CBS News, 12 Apr. 2026 The tomatoes for the shakshouka have been stewing for hours. — Liam Scott, Washington Post, 5 Apr. 2026 But South Carolina’s returners have spent a year stewing on that championship loss, specifically on UConn’s 23-point margin of victory. — Emily Adams, Hartford Courant, 2 Apr. 2026 Hughes spent weeks stewing before calling director Howie Deutsch with the solution. — Seth Abramovitch, HollywoodReporter, 31 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stewing
  1. fretful
  2. boiling
  3. worrying
  4. vexed
  5. simmering
  6. fretting
Adjective
  • The game, like most finals, was a fretful affair, played under a brain-altering gaze.
    — Sam Knight, New Yorker, 20 July 2026
  • The fretful electronic score is by Flying Lotus, Elliot Leung and Olivia Xiaolin.
    — Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 11 June 2026
Definition of fretful
Verb
  • However, boiling water from a kettle poses potential damage to PVC pipe fittings and can create leaks that are considerably more expensive to fix than a clogged drain.
    — Maria Sabella, The Spruce, 4 Aug. 2026
  • Georgia may be known for its boiling summer temperatures, the occasional hurricane and a rogue tornado, but the state is not typically associated with earthquakes.
    — Irene Wright, USA Today, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of boiling
Verb
  • And for a generation scarred by Covid, wars, and the risk of AI, now worrying over job prospects, demand for safety, security, and certainty may be at an all-time high.
    — Ryan Craig, Forbes.com, 8 Aug. 2026
  • The same fans forced to move rows back — or even higher into the upper bowl — after years of never worrying about being priced out by the organization as Laney-Hamilton became Brooklyn’s first WNBA star.
    — Fiifi Frimpong, New York Daily News, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of worrying
Adjective
  • How to do that was a very vexed and complicated problem.
    — David Frum, The Atlantic, 10 June 2026
  • From his perspective, whatever happened was easily resolved — but working on a megahit can make matters more vexed.
    — Daniel D'Addario, Variety, 10 June 2026
Definition of vexed
Verb
  • The incident also brought months of simmering cybersecurity fears to a head, demonstrating how easily AI agents could cause immense damage, while making the case for open models in the era of skyrocketing token costs.
    — Samantha Subin, CNBC, 3 Aug. 2026
  • Advertisement These simmering issues pose a threat to the Republicans ahead of the November midterm elections.
    — Tiago Ventura, Time, 31 July 2026
Definition of simmering
Verb
  • National Democrats are fretting that John Fetterman will switch parties.
    — Adam Beam, AJC.com, 31 July 2026
  • While he was surprised by his fellow Klutch Sports Group client’s decision, Moody preached patience to Warriors fans fretting about their own team’s inactivity this offseason.
    — Joseph Dycus, Mercury News, 30 July 2026
Definition of fretting

Browse Nearby Words

stewed
stewing
stews
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Stewing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stewing. Accessed 10 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on stewing

Nglish: Translation of stewing for Spanish Speakers

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!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

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

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Aug. 7

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
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
fridge-magnet-letters
Drop a Letter Quiz August 2026 Drop a letter from a word to make a totally diffe...
See All