violating

verb

present participle of violate
1
as in breaking
to fail to keep you've violated the company's rule against smoking within 30 feet of the building

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in destroying
to treat (a sacred place or object) shamefully or with great disrespect the invaders violated the temple by using it to stable their horses

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in raping
to engage in sexual activity and especially intercourse with a person unwilling or unable to give consent criminal statutes delineating acts that constitute violating another person

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 violating The details of his parole in that case are not yet clear, but Garcia was out by April 2023, when he was charged with violating that parole. — Olivia Young, CBS News, 7 Nov. 2026 Barnes denied any cooperation violating state law and said ICE agents are legally allowed to be in public areas of the jails. — Mona Darwish, Oc Register, 6 Nov. 2026 When men gossip about a third party, they can be seen as violating traditional expectations of how men should behave, Spoelma said. — Preston Fore, Fortune, 6 Nov. 2026 Kalshi can’t get orders blocking state gambling laws Arkansas filed its lawsuit about a week after Utah Attorney General Derek Brown lodged criminal charges against Kalshi and its founders for violating Utah’s ban on gambling. — Jon Brodkin, ArsTechnica, 5 Nov. 2026 The defendant was not convicted of violating federal election laws. — Aaron Katersky, ABC News, 5 Nov. 2026 The office is seeking a permanent injunction, restitution for affected customers and over $7 million in civil penalties, including for violating city and state laws. — Moná Thomas, PEOPLE, 5 Nov. 2026 After expert testimony arguing the sides of this case, Judge Jeffrey Locke concluded that a burrito is not a sandwich, allowing Qdoba to operate near Panera without violating the lease. — The Bon Appétit Staff, Bon Appetit Magazine, 3 Nov. 2026 Charlotte’s water utility has fielded about 18 complaints a day of people violating mandatory water restrictions in place since mid-May, when the region was facing an extreme drought crisis. — Nick Sullivan, Charlotte Observer, 24 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for violating
  1. breaking
  2. destroying
  3. raping
  4. breaching
  5. desecrating
  6. assaulting
  7. contravening
  8. ruining
Verb
  • Rip currents remain possible at all breaches with breaking waves.
    — CA Weather Bot, Sacbee.com, 4 Nov. 2026
  • But this year's contest ended up being the most expensive in Kansas history, with Hamilton breaking multiple fundraising records.
    — Grace Hills, NPR, 4 Nov. 2026
Definition of breaking
Verb
  • This is the one thing that can stop the agents from destroying us.
    — Jim Cramer, CNBC, 3 Nov. 2026
  • Cyberattacks against supermarket refrigeration systems have disrupted grocery operations across Europe, with hackers remotely manipulating temperature controls and destroying perishable food.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of destroying
Verb
  • The spot sparked national bipartisan backlash on grounds that Acton's mother had lost custody of her children decades ago after her husband, their stepfather, was indicted for raping Acton as a child.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 4 Nov. 2026
  • The defining moment of this campaign came with an ad made by the Ramaswamy campaign that tried to use Acton's estranged mother, who fled the state with a husband who was indicted for raping Acton as a child, to call Acton a liar.
    — Leah Sarnoff, ABC News, 4 Nov. 2026
Definition of raping
Verb
  • In 2024, South Korea’s National Police Agency revealed that North Korean hackers had mounted all-out cyberattacks against South Korean defense companies for over a year, breaching their networks and stealing technical data.
    — Sam Mullins, Foreign Affairs, 28 Oct. 2026
  • Security video showed Morley breaching a fence while still wearing prison clothing.
    — Adam Sabes , Bonny Chu, FOXNews.com, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of breaching
Verb
  • The next day, February 9th, Nakira was charged with first-degree murder, endangering the welfare of a child, desecrating human remains, and tampering with physical evidence.
    — Anja Aronowsky Cronberg, New Yorker, 24 Oct. 2026
  • The judge is desecrating the memory of the Great Charlie Kirk, while taking forever to ask questions that people already know the answer to.
    — Adam Sabes , Michael Ruiz, FOXNews.com, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of desecrating
Verb
  • He also is charged with assaulting a federal officer with a deadly weapon and two additional firearms counts.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 29 Oct. 2026
  • Edward Eisenhard, 38, is accused of assaulting three female victims, including a 12-year-old girl, according to Bucks County District Attorney Joe Khan.
    — Frederick Sutton Sinclair, CBS News, 27 Oct. 2026
Definition of assaulting
Verb
  • Two years ago he was suspended for three months by the Cricket Regulator for betting on cricket between 2017 and 2019, contravening the game’s rules.
    — Paul Newman, New York Times, 23 Aug. 2026
  • In the years intervening, the poem has remained a lodestar, a contravening presence when, in present day America’s vituperative political landscape, the humanities disciplines and higher education itself has been forced to invoke and defend its own authority.
    — Elaine L. Wang September 11, Literary Hub, 11 Sep. 2025
Definition of contravening
Verb
  • Someone else even complained about the self-clean feature ruining their appliance.
    — Stephanie Osmanski, Better Homes & Gardens, 3 Nov. 2026
  • Most hunters probably would have taken a shot at the five-pointer, ruining their chances for the record-class bull.
    — Rich LaRocco, Outdoor Life, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of ruining

Browse Nearby Words

violates
violating
violation
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Cite this Entry

“Violating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/violating. Accessed 8 Nov. 2026.

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