STRADDLING Synonyms: 155 Similar and Opposite Words

straddling 1 of 2

noun

as in fence-sitting

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straddling

2 of 2

verb

present participle of straddle

as in perching

to be in or move into a seated or standing position with your legs on either side of (something) She straddled the horse and waited for her riding partner to mount.

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Dissimilar Words

as in spanning

to be on both sides of (something) The town straddles the river. The movie straddles the line between comedy and drama.

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Dissimilar Words

as in shaking

to agree with or seem to agree with two opposite sides of (something) The politician straddled the issue for weeks.

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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 straddling

Verb

Throughout the year, seasonal rides offer a round-trip or one with a two-hour layover with enough time to snap the iconic photo of straddling the Georgia and Tennessee state line. — Judith Garrison, AJC.com, 5 Nov. 2026 Deputies said that the vehicle continued westbound while straddling the fog line of the left travel lane, with the vehicle halfway in the road and the other portion on the grass median. — Cale Ahearn, Baltimore Sun, 29 Oct. 2026 Ultimately, six people—Skarsgård, Colman, Fischer, Wilson, intimacy coordinator Ita O’Brien, and Oscar-winning cinematographer Lol Crawley—all experimented with positions together, straddling each other in odd ways to block the scenes. — Kenneal Patterson, Vanity Fair, 14 Oct. 2026 Wiener not only leaves behind a richly complex body of work straddling textiles, painting, photographs, and collages, but also a career intricately connected to one of the most important chapters of Austrian art. — Francesca Aton, ARTnews.com, 2 Oct. 2026 Bajo Chiquito sits on the Tuquesa River at the northern end of the Darién Gap, the more than sixty-mile stretch of formidable terrain and riverine forest straddling Panama and Colombia. — Belén Fernández, Harpers Magazine, 22 Sep. 2026 As the camera zooms out, the actress is revealed to be nude straddling a basketball hoop while spinning a ball on her finger like a Harlem Globetrotter. — Kathleen Perricone, Entertainment Weekly, 10 Sep. 2026 This town sits in the Central Idaho Rockies, straddling national forests in the Wood River Valley. — Daniel De Visé, USA Today, 25 Aug. 2026 Back on ground level, The Patio is a more relaxed bar straddling the entrance of the restaurant. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 24 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for straddling

Noun

Keeping four quarterbacks could be seen as another fence-sitting move.

— Mike DeFabo, New York Times, 26 Aug. 2026
Lower mortgage rates will spur some fence-sitting buyers into action and increase sales volumes over last year.

— Phillip Molnar, San Diego Union-Tribune, 6 Mar. 2026

Definition of fence-sitting

Verb

The bird, which some witnesses guessed was a parrot, was seen perching on people’s heads and line dividers, landing on luggage and carry-on bags and even trying to nip at some travelers.

— Charlotte Phillipp, PEOPLE, 19 Oct. 2026
No club have spent more time perching on the highest rung of English football than Everton.

— George Caulkin, New York Times, 7 Sep. 2026

Definition of perching

Verb

The Commonwealth is made up of 56 nations spanning Africa, Asia, the Americas, Europe and the Pacific, most of which were once part of the British Empire.

— Dánica Coto, Los Angeles Times, 2 Nov. 2026
Samsung said Saturday that Altman met with around 50 executives from its affiliates spanning electronics, finance and biotechnology in Yongin, south of Seoul.

— Jenny Lee, CNBC, 2 Nov. 2026

Definition of spanning

Verb

The Catholic headquarters revealed that the two figures had linked up by sharing a photo on Instagram of them shaking hands.

— Hannah Dailey, Billboard, 4 Nov. 2026
Candidates make final push during last-minute campaigning Hochul spent Monday in New York City, shaking hands, taking selfies and even bowling a strike at a campaign rally in Brooklyn.

— Elijah Westbrook, CBS News, 3 Nov. 2026

Definition of shaking

Verb

These include vehicles stopped in curves, vehicles positioned across multiple lanes, and stationary vehicles sitting at unusual angles, such as those encountered near an earlier roadway incident.

— New Atlas, New Atlas, 1 Nov. 2026
Months later, sitting at the dining room table in their Madison home, Helen, Bob, and Corey silently stared at one another.

— Ron Farina, Hartford Courant, 1 Nov. 2026

Definition of sitting

Verb

The island has long been home to skilled ceramicists, textile makers, glassblowers, and leatherworkers, but these practices are increasingly intersecting with a more contemporary design sensibility.

— Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 21 Oct. 2026
Political stratagems in art were shifting in places like New York and Los Angeles, and the Pictures Generation’s ethos began to speak to young Black and brown artists, ultimately intersecting with their desire for representation.

— Hilton Als, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026

Definition of intersecting

Verb

Giannis is more in transition, like, from top to the basket, and Jokic is already ducking in around the basket.

— Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 28 Oct. 2026
Lastly, try ducking into Casey Rubber Stamps, founded in 1979, in the West Village, and a neighborhood fixture since 2003.

— The New Yorker, New Yorker, 16 Oct. 2026