temporizing

verb

present participle of temporize
as in stalling
formal to avoid making a decision or giving a definite answer in order to have more time Pressured by voters on both sides of the issue, the congressmen temporized.

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for temporizing
  1. stalling
  2. delaying
  3. lingering
Verb
  • Landlords found other ways to circumvent the law, such as pressuring residents into making side payments and stalling paperwork.
    — Haley Parsley, Sacbee.com, 24 July 2026
  • The influx of moisture and that storm system’s stalling front have already produced bands of rain in eastern Tennessee, southern Virginia and northern North Carolina.
    — Briana Waxman, CNN Money, 23 July 2026
Definition of stalling
Verb
  • When these systems are under-resourced, investigations become more difficult, delaying interventions that protect the public.
    — Omer Awan, Forbes.com, 24 July 2026
  • The court will sit in September to decide whether to strike down the statutory foundation of the inquiry, delaying one of South Africa’s biggest political risks.
    — Tiisetso Motsoeneng, semafor.com, 24 July 2026
Definition of delaying
Verb
  • Lee’s elbow guard protected him from being hit directly on the bone, but Vitello said there was still some lingering soreness.
    — Justice delos Santos, Mercury News, 26 July 2026
  • Some residents expressed concerns about pollution, the traffic congestion, the dangers of errant drivers around kids and the lingering aroma of frying food.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 26 July 2026
Definition of lingering
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.

Browse Nearby Words

temporizes
temporizing
temps
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Temporizing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/temporizing. Accessed 27 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation
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!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of parochial

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

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

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

Why does English have so many silent letters?

Every Letter Is Silent, Sometimes: A-Z List of Examples
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 24

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Popular

See More

Democracy or Republic: What's the difference?

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List
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
chain-question-mark
Missing Link Quiz July 2026 Five seconds to figure out the word that fits bot...
See All