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waggling

verb

present participle of waggle
as in flapping
to move from side to side or up and down with quick jerky motions the rabbit waggled its ears and hopped away

Synonyms & Similar 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 waggling When LaBeija, as Gus the Theatre Cat, finally strolled onstage to revisit his glory days, waggling his long, polished claws, a younger Gus (Jonathan Burke) appeared, like a mirror dancing toward him. — Emily Nussbaum, New Yorker, 16 Apr. 2026 And thanks to social media videos of their head-tilting, leg waggling antics, these web-slingers are in high demand. — Alina Hartounian, NPR, 29 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for waggling
  1. flapping
  2. flicking
  3. wagging
  4. twitching
  5. bobbing
  6. waving
  7. swishing
  8. switching
Verb
  • That means the bird species flapping around in backyards today are effectively the only surviving dinosaurs.
    — Katie Hunt, CNN Money, 15 Sep. 2026
  • Real manta rays propel themselves by rhythmically flapping and undulating their enormous pectoral fins.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of flapping
Verb
  • At one point, while casually flicking the fly rod in his right hand, Tapper listed other California Democrats expected to enter the 2028 race, including former Vice President Kamala Harris.
    — Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times, 16 Sep. 2026
  • The fire had engulfed the garage roof, with flames flicking nearby trees and threatening to spread beyond the garage.
    — Rob Moore, Mercury News, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of flicking
Verb
  • In one corner, co-owner Teri Lippy, who runs the brewery alongside her husband, Jack, and Ray and Christy Hutchinson, leaned down to hand treats to two tail-wagging yellow Labs brought in by their owner.
    — Evan Moore, Charlotte Observer, 15 Sep. 2026
  • From dogs dressed up in costume to those doing tricks, there was a lot of tail-wagging fun at the BowWow PowWow on Saturday.
    — Julie Gallant, San Diego Union-Tribune, 14 Sep. 2026
Definition of wagging
Verb
  • This is not easy for Robin (Griffin), who, judging by his nervously twitching legs and tendency to info-dump on interlocutors, finds ordinary interactions very stressful.
    — Leslie Felperin, HollywoodReporter, 18 Sep. 2026
  • Green said his symptoms began when his feet started twitching in his sleep.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 30 July 2026
Definition of twitching
Verb
  • At each destination, Eliza kept doing her cinnamon roll dance, bobbing her head and rocking with joy.
    — Sean Carlson, Travel + Leisure, 15 Sep. 2026
  • There's currently no 100-MW Kraaken bobbing offshore, powering 32,000 homes, at least for now.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of bobbing
Verb
  • Riot was seen looking up at the stage and waving back at his dad while Rihanna filmed the interaction.
    — Madison E. Goldberg, PEOPLE, 19 Sep. 2026
  • Groups of screaming preschoolers pass by us in the park, fists clutched tight onto their walking ropes, chubby hands waving hello or pointing to squirrels scampering in their path.
    — CT Jones, Rolling Stone, 15 Sep. 2026
Definition of waving
Verb
  • But in his own drawing, De Kooning let rip with liner brushes, swishing them about all over the paper, achieving undulant lines that contract and expand like living creatures.
    — Sebastian Smee, The Atlantic, 16 Sep. 2026
  • One displays images of water swishing around the screen’s golden frame.
    — Tania Azhang, Sacbee.com, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of swishing
Verb
  • The problem is that restarting an aircraft factory after 11 years isn’t like switching a machine back on.
    — Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 19 Sep. 2026
  • These cortical cells make up only around one percent of the cortex’s inhibitory neurons, and switching them on in a mouse puts the animal to sleep.
    — Jacek Krywko, ArsTechnica, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of switching

Browse Nearby Words

waggles
waggling
wagon
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Cite this Entry

“Waggling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/waggling. Accessed 26 Sep. 2026.

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