brushing (off)

verb

present participle of brush (off)
as in winking (at)

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for brushing (off)
  1. shrugging off
  2. dismissing
  3. rejecting
Verb
  • Part of it is that more women are speaking up about hair loss, shrugging off the stigma and reaching out for help.
    — Maggie Ryan, Flow Space, 25 Aug. 2026
  • Trump, now shrugging off concerns about the threat posed to those who remained aboard the plane he was supposed to be on.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 16 Aug. 2026
Definition of shrugging off
Verb
  • William Roberson Anyone dismissing the Slingshot (in any form) on practicality grounds is missing the point by a light year or two - the Slingshot makes a Miata seem like a spacious minivan.
    — William Roberson, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2026
  • She was especially hurt that some of the people who criticized Cox most harshly, dismissing him as craven and disingenuous, were those who had the closest relationships with him.
    — McKay Coppins, The Atlantic, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of dismissing
Verb
  • The Assembly plan calls for rejecting the governor’s cap on certain damages that people can receive.
    — Stephen Hobbs, Sacbee.com, 26 Aug. 2026
  • The council would have the final say in approving — or rejecting — Lucas’ nomination.
    — Kacen Bayless, Kansas City Star, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of rejecting
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.

Browse Nearby Words

brushing (aside or off)
brushing (off)
brush (off)
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Brushing (off).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/brushing%20%28off%29. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of dissonant

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Why does English have so many silent letters?

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
skateboard-dog-hat
Wordmaxxing Slang Quiz Give your vocabulary a glow up by getting sendy w...
See All