1
as in swaying
to make a series of unsteady side-to-side motions
the boat tossed to and fro in the heavy seas
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in fidgeting
to make jerky or restless movements
tossed and turned in bed all night, unable to sleep in the heat
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in throwing
to send through the air especially with a quick forward motion of the arm
toss that football over here
Synonyms & Similar Words
4
as in dumping
to get rid of as useless or unwanted
we need to go through the basement and toss whatever we don't use
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of tossing
Suarez was excellent on Friday, tossing eight shutout innings to deliver the best start by a Red Sox pitcher so far this season.
—
Mac Cerullo, Boston Herald, 18 Apr. 2026
Hot sleepers know the feeling of tossing, turning, and sweating through too-warm bedding especially well, but the proper seasonal bedding can eliminate this issue.
—Maggie Horton, PEOPLE, 17 Apr. 2026
Add the buckwheat groats and toast, shaking and tossing often and adjusting heat as needed, until crisp and light golden brown, 2 to 4 minutes.
—Kelly McCarthy, ABC News, 16 Apr. 2026
But instead of tossing those misfit shades, many hardware and big-box retailers sell them at major discounts—as one Redditor recently found out.
—Michele Laufik, Martha Stewart, 15 Apr. 2026
In various images, the person can be seen tossing the Molotov cocktail, which landed at the top of a metal gate and started a small fire.
—Olga R. Rodriguez, Fortune, 14 Apr. 2026
But if anger or frustration is your driving mood for the day, rolling balls or tossing sandbags may not do it.
—John Aguilar, Denver Post, 14 Apr. 2026
Hentges to pitch for Sacramento Left-hander Sam Hentges is scheduled to pitch an inning for Triple-A Sacramento on Wednesday after tossing a perfect inning for Single-A San Jose on Sunday.
—Justice Delos Santos, Mercury News, 14 Apr. 2026
Various deputies tried to extract the suspect, including breaking windows and tossing multiple rounds of a substance, as could be seen on television footage.
—Andrew J. Campa, Los Angeles Times, 9 Apr. 2026
Mac Cerullo, Boston Herald, 18 Apr. 2026
Hot sleepers know the feeling of tossing, turning, and sweating through too-warm bedding especially well, but the proper seasonal bedding can eliminate this issue.
—Maggie Horton, PEOPLE, 17 Apr. 2026
Add the buckwheat groats and toast, shaking and tossing often and adjusting heat as needed, until crisp and light golden brown, 2 to 4 minutes.
—Kelly McCarthy, ABC News, 16 Apr. 2026
But instead of tossing those misfit shades, many hardware and big-box retailers sell them at major discounts—as one Redditor recently found out.
—Michele Laufik, Martha Stewart, 15 Apr. 2026
In various images, the person can be seen tossing the Molotov cocktail, which landed at the top of a metal gate and started a small fire.
—Olga R. Rodriguez, Fortune, 14 Apr. 2026
But if anger or frustration is your driving mood for the day, rolling balls or tossing sandbags may not do it.
—John Aguilar, Denver Post, 14 Apr. 2026
Hentges to pitch for Sacramento Left-hander Sam Hentges is scheduled to pitch an inning for Triple-A Sacramento on Wednesday after tossing a perfect inning for Single-A San Jose on Sunday.
—Justice Delos Santos, Mercury News, 14 Apr. 2026
Various deputies tried to extract the suspect, including breaking windows and tossing multiple rounds of a substance, as could be seen on television footage.
—Andrew J. Campa, Los Angeles Times, 9 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tossing
Verb
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Sentiment in other nations is swaying China’s way, too.—
Jessie Yeung,
CNN Money,
15 Apr. 2026
-
The grounds are ensconced in swaying palm trees and lotus ponds that offer panoramic vistas of the ocean from nearly every angle.—
Asia London Palomba,
Travel + Leisure,
11 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The design was inspired by the hair-tearing boredom of COVID lockdown-era remote work, a time in which Knafs founder Ben Petersen maintained sanity during Zoom calls by fidgeting around with pocket knives and doodling pictures.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
26 Mar. 2026
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Minimal but purposeful movement, avoiding fidgeting or excessive gestures, shows intention.—
Cheryl Robinson,
Forbes.com,
26 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The inning included a play at second base where Luis Arraez was kicked in the throwing hand by Dylan Beavers but remained in the game.—
Jerry McDonald,
Mercury News,
12 Apr. 2026
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The Pirates also took advantage of Caleb Thielbar’s throwing error to score an unearned run off the lefty reliever in the 11th inning.—
Patrick Mooney,
New York Times,
12 Apr. 2026
Verb
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That goal came moments after a penalty to Oliver Kapanen expired, a penalty that came as a result of Arber Xhekaj failing to gain the red line before dumping the puck in to get a change in, resulting in an icing.—
Arpon Basu,
New York Times,
12 Apr. 2026
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He was then seen flying over large crowds of protestors and dumping brown liquid on them in what appeared to be Times Square in New York City.—
Charlotte Phillipp,
PEOPLE,
11 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Meanwhile the Caliente Range — those mountains just to the west — are lurching the opposite way.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
10 Apr. 2026
-
Still, morale is much worse compared with December 2024, before DOGE took aim at the health agency's budgets and staffing, and before rounds of lurching job cuts and reinstatements left thousands of CDC workers in limbo or severed from their careers.—
Pien Huang,
NPR,
25 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Tony Fauci was not just jerking the country around.—
David Blumenthal,
Fortune,
24 Mar. 2026
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The clip on TikTok shows the seat jerking abruptly, apparently from forceful pushes by the person seated behind her.—
Kelly McGreal,
FOXNews.com,
13 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Two men who had expressed support for the Islamic State were arrested after one was seen hurling a homemade bomb into the protest.—
New York Times,
New York Times,
10 Apr. 2026
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What makes Becky Shaw so fulfilling is its cynicism about love and its ruthless method of hurling those frustrations at its audience.—
Shania Russell,
Entertainment Weekly,
7 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Refresh plants in fall by harvesting and discarding the outer leaves to initiate new growth.—
Kim Toscano,
Southern Living,
12 Apr. 2026
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Keita Design’s young woodworkers use sustainable practices to create unique pieces, keeping natural imperfections and warps instead of discarding them as waste.—
Lisa Boone,
Los Angeles Times,
8 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Tossing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tossing. Accessed 19 Apr. 2026.
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