yawning 1 of 2

Definition of yawningnext

yawning

2 of 2

verb

present participle of yawn

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 yawning
Adjective
As such, anticipated spending cuts have not materialized and British Chancellor Rachel Reeves is expected to announced tax hikes in her next Autumn Budget to fill a yawning fiscal hole that could be as much as £50 billion ($67.2 billion), although estimates vary. Holly Ellyatt, CNBC, 30 Sep. 2025 Yet the shooting also divided the American public in ways that many found disturbing, including a yawning lack of empathy for the victim and even cheering for the shooter. Patrik Jonsson, The Christian Science Monitor, 10 Dec. 2024 In Palm Beach County, Ian's yawning reach spun up four tornadoes. Jennifer Borresen, USA Today, 10 Jan. 2023 Wet Leg make fun of something that Harry Styles couldn’t quite capture in his cover of their song on BBC Radio 1: the yawning banality of male attention. Los Angeles Times, 4 Dec. 2022 Dellandrea still impresses: Stars forward Ty Dellandrea picked up his third assist of the season on Tuesday, working his way to a puck and finding Wyatt Johnston for a yawning cage in the second period. Dallas News, 25 Oct. 2022 But McNamara obtained the transcripts and discovered yawning contradictions. Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 9 June 2022 Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York may be at opposite ends of the ideological spectrum, but a more yawning gap between figures in the party has existed before. John Dickerson, The Atlantic, 1 Mar. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for yawning
Adjective
  • James O’Donoghue, a planetary scientist with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, likened our planet’s tilting phenomenon to a nodding head.
    Aylin Woodward, WSJ, 21 Dec. 2021
Adjective
  • This is the most gaping vacancy of all—Trump gestures toward two American incitements, one historic, one extremely recent.
    Fintan O’Toole, The New York Review of Books, 9 Apr. 2026
  • Waldo’s digital shopping cart — and McCurdy’s brusque descriptions of her late-night binges — highlight the gaping, cavernous maw of her wants.
    CT Jones, Rolling Stone, 20 Jan. 2026
Verb
  • Nasal dilators are flexible devices designed to open the nostrils and improve airflow, often used to reduce snoring or ease nighttime breathing.
    Samantha Agate, Miami Herald, 1 May 2026
  • When Back Sleeping Isn’t the Move People with obstructive sleep apnea or chronic snoring should avoid it.
    Allison Palmer, Charlotte Observer, 9 Apr. 2026
Adjective
  • An autopsy showed that the infant died from asphyxiation secondary to a co-sleeping/overlay event with an unsafe sleeping environment.
    Laura Bauer, Kansas City Star, 26 Feb. 2026
Adjective
  • Attenborough, more than anybody, has established the link between the patch of glass in our living rooms and the wide world beyond—which, thanks to him, is revealed to be wider, weirder, and more combative than anyone could have conceived.
    Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 8 May 2026
  • However, passes weren’t connecting, Montreal’s speed was able to keep up with the Frost’s own, and shot attempts ended up being too wide of the net to go in.
    Theodore Tollefson, Twin Cities, 8 May 2026
Verb
  • Video released on Thursday, April 30, appears to show a police dog sniffing White House Correspondents' dinner accused shooter, Cole Tomas Allen, moments before shots were fired on Saturday, April 25.
    Mary Walrath-Holdridge, USA Today, 1 May 2026
  • Orange County Public Health Services did not find just one mouse sniffing around for scraps.
    Alejandro Avila OutKick, FOXNews.com, 28 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • Each speech in Policy is time-limited; kids speak like gasping auctioneers to cram in arguments their opponents must try to rebut.
    Eli Durst, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
  • Symptoms of pertussis, commonly known as whooping cough, resemble a cold, with a cough that usually worsens over weeks and can cause gasping, vomiting and difficulty breathing, the Pasadena Public Health Department said in a statement announcing the outbreak.
    Fedor Zarkhin, Los Angeles Times, 30 Apr. 2026
Verb
  • The window next to my desk overlooks the gym’s large communal exercise room, and throughout the day, I am taunted by the sight of gyrating bodies panting through a Zumba class or a kettlebell set.
    Rachel Syme, New Yorker, 8 May 2026
  • For one, there’s Jean-Michel Basquiat’s monumental panting Museum Security (Broadway Meltdown), from 1983, set for Sotheby’s contemporary art sale on May 14, estimated at $45 million.
    Devorah Lauter, ARTnews.com, 4 May 2026

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Yawning.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/yawning. Accessed 8 May. 2026.

More from Merriam-Webster on yawning

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster