as in motioned
to direct or notify by a movement or gesture
waved them over to the side of the road
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 waved
Da Lin, CBS News, 2 Mar. 2026
Airlines canceled thousands of flights and waved change and cancellation fees for airports across the East Coast.
—Alex Harring, CNBC, 23 Feb. 2026
Once closed, students gathered in the road and played music, displayed signs and waved flags.
—Cate Charron, IndyStar, 2 Feb. 2026
Danai Gurira wraps her braids in intricate, waved shapes along her face for an elegant red carpet look.
—Audrey Noble, InStyle, 13 Jan. 2026
After Trump’s press conference about U.S. actions in Venezuela, people still gathered outside the Doral restaurant and sang, danced and waved flags.
—Baltimore Sun Staff, Baltimore Sun, 3 Jan. 2026
But publicly, Broncos head coach Sean Payton treated news of Justin Herbert’s Sunday absence with a waved hand and a shrug.
—Luca Evans, Denver Post, 1 Jan. 2026
As a helicopter carrying hostages to the Ichilov hospital flew overhead, crowds cheered, applauded and waved flags.
—Callum Sutherland, Time, 13 Oct. 2025
The waved walls in Calce Romana serving as a shoe display are inspired by the unfolding of leather rolls and the facade of the Fendi footwear factory in Fermo, in Italy’s Marche region.
—Luisa Zargani, Footwear News, 23 Sep. 2025
Noah Gulley, Miami Herald, 12 Mar. 2026
According to court documents, Azevedo allegedly waved to his friend, Howard, and told him to grab the tusk of the woolly mammoth fossil.
—Kansas City Star, 12 Mar. 2026
Lawmakers listened and asked questions while demonstrators outside displayed signs and waved flags.
—Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 11 Mar. 2026
Dan shone his flashlight in the crags of a rock wall, and the antennae of hundreds of spiny lobsters waved in its beam.
—Betsy Andrews, Condé Nast Traveler, 10 Mar. 2026
Ten miles out, our car was waved over by another motorist standing on the roadside.
—Kevin West, Travel + Leisure, 10 Mar. 2026
Children marched wearing inflatable horses while lion dancers and martial artists waved to the crowd.
—Jane Tyska, Mercury News, 8 Mar. 2026
Friends waved him over, and younger Chinese scholars sought his attention.
—Chang Che, New Yorker, 8 Mar. 2026
Trump waved away both resolutions with a presidential veto.
—Cybele Mayes-Osterman, USA Today, 4 Mar. 2026
Adjective
The crowd danced, waved flags, and voiced their support for democracy in the country they were forced to leave decades ago.
—Da Lin, CBS News, 2 Mar. 2026
Airlines canceled thousands of flights and waved change and cancellation fees for airports across the East Coast.
—Alex Harring, CNBC, 23 Feb. 2026
Once closed, students gathered in the road and played music, displayed signs and waved flags.
—Cate Charron, IndyStar, 2 Feb. 2026
Danai Gurira wraps her braids in intricate, waved shapes along her face for an elegant red carpet look.
—Audrey Noble, InStyle, 13 Jan. 2026
After Trump’s press conference about U.S. actions in Venezuela, people still gathered outside the Doral restaurant and sang, danced and waved flags.
—Baltimore Sun Staff, Baltimore Sun, 3 Jan. 2026
But publicly, Broncos head coach Sean Payton treated news of Justin Herbert’s Sunday absence with a waved hand and a shrug.
—Luca Evans, Denver Post, 1 Jan. 2026
As a helicopter carrying hostages to the Ichilov hospital flew overhead, crowds cheered, applauded and waved flags.
—Callum Sutherland, Time, 13 Oct. 2025
The waved walls in Calce Romana serving as a shoe display are inspired by the unfolding of leather rolls and the facade of the Fendi footwear factory in Fermo, in Italy’s Marche region.
—Luisa Zargani, Footwear News, 23 Sep. 2025
Verb
Flags hung off shoulders, waved above heads, and wrapped around waists like capes.
—Noah Gulley, Miami Herald, 12 Mar. 2026
According to court documents, Azevedo allegedly waved to his friend, Howard, and told him to grab the tusk of the woolly mammoth fossil.
—Kansas City Star, 12 Mar. 2026
Lawmakers listened and asked questions while demonstrators outside displayed signs and waved flags.
—Christopher Keating, Hartford Courant, 11 Mar. 2026
Dan shone his flashlight in the crags of a rock wall, and the antennae of hundreds of spiny lobsters waved in its beam.
—Betsy Andrews, Condé Nast Traveler, 10 Mar. 2026
Ten miles out, our car was waved over by another motorist standing on the roadside.
—Kevin West, Travel + Leisure, 10 Mar. 2026
Children marched wearing inflatable horses while lion dancers and martial artists waved to the crowd.
—Jane Tyska, Mercury News, 8 Mar. 2026
Friends waved him over, and younger Chinese scholars sought his attention.
—Chang Che, New Yorker, 8 Mar. 2026
Trump waved away both resolutions with a presidential veto.
—Cybele Mayes-Osterman, USA Today, 4 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for waved
Adjective
-
If the dress code calls for true beachy or vacation attire, the Jaylah Strapless Midi Dress from Lulus looks like a wavy, ocean-like print that will blend in perfectly on the shore.—
Anna Popp,
Travel + Leisure,
8 Mar. 2026
-
The pageboy bob The subtle, soft layers of the pageboy bob introduce volume and movement and can be worn wavy or with a side part.—
Fiona Embleton,
Glamour,
6 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
On the other end of the court, Bulls coach Billy Donovan motioned for a timeout the moment the whistle blew.—
Julia Poe,
Chicago Tribune,
24 Feb. 2026
-
That’s when Washington’s Department of Health motioned for and received an Order of Default against Montano.—
David J. Neal,
Miami Herald,
19 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
As the deep bass from the DJ’s techno beats shook cups of cocktail sauce on a nearby table, Koc, a software engineer by day, gestured to the hundreds of OpenClaw disciples on the dance floor and argued that the excitement was more than just a passing fad.—
Jared Perlo,
NBC news,
8 Mar. 2026
-
Some gestured at something like corporate protest; others blamed an unaffordable city.—
Nora DeLigter,
Curbed,
6 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
For best results, use a hair dryer that has a diffuser for curls that are defined, but not frizzy.—
Audrey Noble,
InStyle,
10 Mar. 2026
-
And my hair is very, very frizzy.—
Eden Stuart,
Glamour,
5 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
Also screening at the fest is Harry Lighton’s kinky BDSM romance Pillion, led by Alexander Skarsgard and Harry Melling and Alex Burunova’s Satisfaction, a study of the creative tension between two British composers with Laird and Whitehead.—
Lily Ford,
HollywoodReporter,
17 Feb. 2026
-
Bread dough The morning after Cathy and Heathcliff spy on Joseph (Ewan Mitchell) and Zillah’s (Amy Morgan) kinky stable tryst, Cathy loses her composure at the breakfast table watching a very wet dough (focaccia, maybe?—
Fran Hoepfner,
Vulture,
16 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The rest of her hair was pulled up in an undone updo, with a handful of delicately curled tendrils falling down her shoulders for extra romantic effect.—
Kara Nesvig,
Allure,
9 Feb. 2026
-
Senior Sebastian Valencia scored goals on a header on a cross by junior Mason Sanders and another on a curled solo shot from distance.—
Buddy Collings,
The Orlando Sentinel,
14 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Waved.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/waved. Accessed 14 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
