WAVING Synonyms: 61 Similar and Opposite Words

waving 1 of 2

noun

as in flapping

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Dissimilar Words

waving

2 of 2

verb

present participle of wave

as in motioning

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 waving

Noun

Every September 11th, people assemble near Ground Zero for the tolling of a bell, the whispering of prayers, the offering of flowers, the waving of flags. — Jill Lepore, New Yorker, 6 Sep. 2026 Similarly, the World Cup is a global phenomenon in which the waving of national colors reaches fever pitch. — Tracy Grant, Encyclopedia Britannica, 9 July 2026 Egypt has arrested and prosecuted gays and lesbians on the basis of vague indecency laws and has cracked down on any outward expressions of Pride, especially the waving of rainbow flags. — Andrew Destin, Chicago Tribune, 17 June 2026 With his own future still unconfirmed, Guardiola could be seen pumping his fists in celebration when Rayan Cherki slipped in the third goal and, after the final whistle, there was a victory walk around the pitch and a lot of affectionate waving and kiss-blowing. — Daniel Taylor, New York Times, 14 May 2026 It also has been roiled by the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, stirring protests outside the venues and forcing organizers to clamp down on political flag-waving. — ABC News, 23 Apr. 2026 Flag waving, immigration restriction, and culture-war rallying cries can shore up the MAGA-tech coalition, but more will be needed to achieve lasting success. — Walter Russell Mead, The Atlantic, 24 Jan. 2026 Assuming whatever creature birthed from a spider egg was also a shapeshifter would even allow the show to bring back everyone’s favorite dancing clown in a modern-day context without too much hand-waving. — Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 15 Dec. 2025 Some 65,000 fans reveling in SDFC’s six goals scored and vibing off the supporter groups’ chants, drum-banging and flag-waving. — Tom Krasovic, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Nov. 2025

Verb

Watchstanders got a distress call just before noon from the good Samaritan, who told them that there was a vessel with smoke coming from it roughly five miles west of the beach, with a person waving their arms on board. — CBS News, 2 Nov. 2026 Milwaukee fans in the crowd of 40,514, many waving yellow towels and some wearing cheeseheads, brought a Badger State feel to Tropicana Field. — Ronald Blum, Chicago Tribune, 28 Oct. 2026 Other clips showed the 1-year-old waving at the camera from her musician mother’s arms and sleeping while tucked into her armpit. — Catherine Santino, PEOPLE, 28 Oct. 2026 Many of those violet-clad, towel-waving fans packed Chase Center for a Game 4 watch party. — ABC News, 25 Oct. 2026 The cast members, if not running to de-wig and get into their next costume, can be seen dancing, waving and greeting others buried in that centre-stage circus. — Lily Ford, HollywoodReporter, 25 Oct. 2026 Footage from Chinese state broadcaster CCTV showed Kim walking on the bridge, lined by people waving flags, towards North Korea. — CNN Money, 24 Oct. 2026 At the conclusion of an English-language service interspersed with hymns in Arabic, the priest introduced Salazar, who stood up in the front row, smiling and waving. — Daniel Castro, New Yorker, 17 Oct. 2026 These giant humpbacks, a pod of them came up and around us and started breaching and started waving. — William Earl, Variety, 16 Oct. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for waving

Noun

The speed of my spinning nunchucks wasn’t nearly as fearsome as the flapping of my upper arm flab.

— Johanna Stein, Los Angeles Times, 11 Sep. 2026
Symmetrical wing flapping generates forward thrust, while differential wing motion provides steering for smooth, quiet indoor flight.

— Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 13 July 2026

Definition of flapping

Verb

With eight seconds left in the first half, Willis put the Dolphins up 10, throwing a 1-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Malik Washington, who ran an out pattern in the end zone after motioning to the slot.

— David Furones, Sun Sentinel, 1 Nov. 2026
Tight end John Bates lined up out wide to the far side, motioning to hurry up.

— ABC News, ABC News, 11 Oct. 2026

Definition of motioning

Noun

Horgan remains a magnetic screen presence and a sharp comic writer, making Alex’s flailing ever enjoyable despite her aimlessness.

— Alison Herman, Variety, 20 Sep. 2026
Unai Emery’s penchant for rehabilitating flailing, once prodigious talents now extends to Alejandro Garnacho.

— Anantaajith Raghuraman, New York Times, 30 July 2026

Definition of flailing

Verb

This is a subject far older than this Lean-In-era epiphany, yet New Stanford stops short at gesturing faintly in the direction of conversations that could theoretically be had.

— Judy Berman, Time, 21 Oct. 2026
Prescott then can be seen speaking to Cowboys security and gesturing toward the other man.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 9 Oct. 2026