1
as in flapping
to move from side to side or up and down with quick jerky motions
the cat's tail wagged back and forth in annoyance
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in gossiping
to relate sometimes questionable or secret information of a personal nature
tongues will wag as soon as word of the house's selling price gets around
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of wagging
Her debut turn alongside Jeremy Renner as a seductive escort got industry tongues wagging.
—
Alex Ritman, Variety, 15 Feb. 2026
Start your new year with love, cuddles and wagging tails!
—Hema Sivanandam, Mercury News, 22 Dec. 2025
Christmas cheer came early, with wagging tails and floppy ears.
—Ronnie Li, USA Today, 19 Dec. 2025
Her body became stiff, alert, and her ever-wagging tail dropped low.
—Kelso Harper, Scientific American, 16 Dec. 2025
The Naked Gun stars Pamela Anderson and Liam Neeson sent tongues wagging over the summer with their flirty press tour while promoting the reboot of the slapstick police spoof comedies of the 1980s.
—Mekishana Pierre, Entertainment Weekly, 9 Dec. 2025
Tongues wagging across the country, everyone up in arms over the scandal.
—Lizz Schumer, PEOPLE, 8 Dec. 2025
The heartwarming clip shared in November under the username @laurenandcody shows the golden retriever, Charlie, jumping around, wagging his tail, and burying his head in the snow, after his owner took him out to enjoy the first snowfall of the year.
—Maria Azzurra Volpe, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Dec. 2025
There wasn’t any tailgating at Gillette Stadium Sunday, but there were plenty of wagging tails.
—Boston Herald Staff, Boston Herald, 19 Oct. 2025
Alex Ritman, Variety, 15 Feb. 2026
Start your new year with love, cuddles and wagging tails!
—Hema Sivanandam, Mercury News, 22 Dec. 2025
Christmas cheer came early, with wagging tails and floppy ears.
—Ronnie Li, USA Today, 19 Dec. 2025
Her body became stiff, alert, and her ever-wagging tail dropped low.
—Kelso Harper, Scientific American, 16 Dec. 2025
The Naked Gun stars Pamela Anderson and Liam Neeson sent tongues wagging over the summer with their flirty press tour while promoting the reboot of the slapstick police spoof comedies of the 1980s.
—Mekishana Pierre, Entertainment Weekly, 9 Dec. 2025
Tongues wagging across the country, everyone up in arms over the scandal.
—Lizz Schumer, PEOPLE, 8 Dec. 2025
The heartwarming clip shared in November under the username @laurenandcody shows the golden retriever, Charlie, jumping around, wagging his tail, and burying his head in the snow, after his owner took him out to enjoy the first snowfall of the year.
—Maria Azzurra Volpe, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Dec. 2025
There wasn’t any tailgating at Gillette Stadium Sunday, but there were plenty of wagging tails.
—Boston Herald Staff, Boston Herald, 19 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wagging
Verb
-
Many readers will remember the MetaFly, a remote-control robotic insect that flies by actually flapping its wings.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
17 Feb. 2026
-
Scheffler trailed by two strokes before unleashing a 6-iron on his 18th-hole approach, leaving just 2 feet, 7 inches for an eagle putt that was slightly complicated by wind gusts flapping his navy pants.—
Cam Inman,
Mercury News,
16 Feb. 2026
Verb
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There were no street-style fits or social media postings, just vaping and gossiping and patiently waiting to be let in to dance.—
Leigh Nordstrom,
Footwear News,
15 Feb. 2026
-
They were seen by the clergy, for example, to be distracted by chocolate, drinking it and gossiping instead of paying attention to mass.—
Dana Taylor,
USA Today,
13 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
And many of them were side-stepping and bobbing along to a set by DJ Mace, who was also busting moves nonstop, even when the cameras weren't on him.—
Pien Huang,
NPR,
6 Feb. 2026
-
Meeks and cinematographer Stefan Weinberger pay special attention to the region’s natural beauty, repeating a single shot of a car bobbing over a two-lane highway amid vibrant green hills.—
Katie Rife,
IndieWire,
25 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The name Dekopin in Japanese refers to flicking someone on the forehead with a finger, typically as a lighthearted punishment or joke.—
Ryan Brennan,
Miami Herald,
24 Feb. 2026
-
In Japanese, the word refers to flicking someone on the forehead with a finger, typically as a lighthearted punishment or joke.—
Ryan Brennan,
Kansas City Star,
24 Feb. 2026
Verb
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If Schoen is talking money but doesn’t have the final call on contracts, how will that impact which players the Giants ultimately both pursue and sign?—
Pat Leonard,
New York Daily News,
23 Feb. 2026
-
Lisa Rinna's lips were made for talking.—
David Oliver,
USA Today,
23 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Across the calm waters behind a pumping station near Lake Borgne, hundreds of saplings stand out in the mist, wrapped in white plastic cylinders.—
Melina Walling,
Los Angeles Times,
19 Feb. 2026
-
A couple of people pulled out knives and slipped over to puncture leather hoses pumping water to put out the fire.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
19 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The film uses music, the clippity-clop of hooves and twitching furry ears for her three donkeys — Palaye, Ruperto, Palomo — to surf critical acclaim on the film festival circuit to the upcoming Academy Awards.—
Etan Vlessing,
HollywoodReporter,
19 Feb. 2026
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But the Missouri was always a wild river twitching its bed from side to side across its flood plain.—
Edward Lotterman,
Twin Cities,
1 Feb. 2026
Verb
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After shaking off the flu, Arenas didn’t make his first bucket until almost midway through the second half.—
Ryan Kartje,
Los Angeles Times,
22 Feb. 2026
-
Cameras showed audience members nodding along, shaking their shoulders and otherwise getting into the music.—
Georg Szalai,
HollywoodReporter,
22 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Wagging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wagging. Accessed 26 Feb. 2026.
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