straddling 1 of 2

straddling

2 of 2

verb

present participle of straddle
1
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.

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

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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
In the world of traffic oddities, one car straddling a bike path median — like a gymnast poised on a balance beam — could be called a fluke. Eric Adler, Kansas City Star, 31 July 2026 Mythical creatures, too, soaked in the supernatural; half-men, half-animals who evaded classification—centaurs and satyrs, fauns and werewolves—straddling the boundary between man and beast. Literary Hub, 30 July 2026 It’s situated in the Absaroka-Beartooth Wilderness north of Yellowstone National Park straddling the Montana-Wyoming border. Kris Millgate, Outdoor Life, 29 July 2026 Cities across the Southwest are stepping up conservation efforts amid the growing crisis facing a key Colorado River reservoir straddling the Utah-Arizona border. Swasti Singhai, USA Today, 26 July 2026 At her white adoptive family’s estate, Thina (26), a Black surgeon straddling two worlds, prepares for her wedding with a woke Black fiancé and her white adoptive sister – her best friend. John Hopewell, Variety, 14 July 2026 The deputies yell at Stingley, in prone position, to stop resisting and at various times, one deputy kneels over Stingley, straddling his back and pressing his knee down on Stingley’s buttocks. Theresa Clift, Sacbee.com, 13 July 2026 Since graduating from the YA fantasy series, Pattinson has become one of our most interesting actors, straddling the space between indie and mainstream filmmaking. Brianna Zigler, Entertainment Weekly, 3 July 2026 The race’s start location means that the Pyrenees, straddling the French-Spanish border, are visited exceptionally early. Jacob Whitehead, New York Times, 1 July 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for straddling
Noun
  • 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
  • There’s merit in seeing both sides of an argument, but there’s no honor in fence-sitting forever, which is Alex’s fatal flaw.
    Anusha Praturu, Vulture, 7 Mar. 2025
Verb
  • Blue dashers perch on short reeds and grasses to wait for prey, but each species of perching dragonfly has its own preference for perch height and type.
    Rachel Sargent Mirus, Hartford Courant, 3 Aug. 2026
  • Sandy was spotted later in the day perching on top of a sugar pine tree.
    Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 2 July 2026
Verb
  • One of the mesh’s main advantages is its ability to capture particles spanning an exceptionally broad size range, from approximately five millimeters down to tens of nanometers.
    Georgina Jedikovska, Interesting Engineering, 5 Aug. 2026
  • With its iconic canals, Gothic architecture, Moorish windows, and artisan legacy spanning everything from Murano glass and Burano lace to terrazzo flooring, Venice is a design lover's paradise.
    Madeline Weinfield, Architectural Digest, 5 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • His hands were not shaking, and the cup was returned to his father un-rinsed and brimming with water.
    Cynthia Zarin, Harpers Magazine, 4 Aug. 2026
  • That dynamic is shaking the electric power industry to its core.
    Laurent Belsie, Christian Science Monitor, 4 Aug. 2026
Noun
  • On submarines, equipment of this kind can support essential fluid-handling functions in environments where compact construction, dependable operation and tight performance tolerances are critical.
    Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 9 Aug. 2026
  • Residents may resume their usual food handling practices and make choices based on their individual risk tolerance.
    Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA Today, 8 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • Take turns with your husband sitting with the baby in the safe space, or even hire a (healthy) sitter to stay in the room with your son.
    Jeanne Phillips, Mercury News, 4 Aug. 2026
  • Nolan’s The Odyssey is close to crossing the $1 billion mark in the global box office, sitting at $911 million after three weekends.
    Armando Tinoco, Deadline, 4 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • That innovation is also intersecting with the growth of artificial intelligence capabilities, according to Hendrik Venter, CEO of DHL Supply Chain.
    Laya Neelakandan, CNBC, 25 July 2026
  • With 24 main characters interwoven around the town of Nashville, home of country music and intersecting political undercurrents, the film tries to make sense of the chaos.
    Glenn Whipp, Los Angeles Times, 29 June 2026
Verb
  • Larkin has used Moskowitz’s refusal to appear with him to accuse the reelection-seeking congressman of ducking debates and avoiding the voters.
    Anthony Man, Sun Sentinel, 6 Aug. 2026
  • Two men walking across the street on Parkside Place can be seen ducking for cover, one behind a parked car.
    Lisa Rozner, CBS News, 6 Aug. 2026

Cite this Entry

“Straddling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/straddling. Accessed 11 Aug. 2026.

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