perfecting

verb

present participle of perfect
1
as in finishing
to bring (something) to a state where nothing remains to be done perfected the arrangements for their long-awaited European vacation

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2
as in improving
to make better an art teacher who seems to believe that you can always perfect a painting with some additional brush strokes

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 perfecting The team at Vienna Institute of Technology, led by physicist Thorsten Schumm, spent over 15 years perfecting the recipe for a crystal that could be used for a nuclear clock. — Ameya Paleja, Interesting Engineering, 21 Aug. 2026 Every persuasion surface the industry spent 30 years perfecting sits on a journey the customer no longer takes. — Himanshu Sinha, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026 Sophie Darlington has been filming big African cats since the ‘90s and is still perfecting new ways to tell visually authentic stories of the Animal Kingdom. — Sarah Shachat, IndieWire, 19 Aug. 2026 Whitey’s Jolly Kone has spent decades perfecting every menu item and the proof is in the flavor. — Sacbee.com, 7 Aug. 2026 The key to perfecting these looks was incorporating just one unique silhouette, color, or pattern into the outfit. — Bianca Kratky, Glamour, 6 Aug. 2026 As Plasvic continues, perfecting the texture was one of the biggest priorities when developing Super Serum Skin Tint. — Conçetta Ciarlo, Vogue, 30 July 2026 Le Teint Healthy Glow has the weightlessness of a powder paired with the skin perfecting qualities of a liquid. — Reece Andavolgyi, InStyle, 29 July 2026 With that, his exertions in perfecting his homegrown colony process—the green smoothie for caterpillars, testing procedures for parasites—came into clearer view for me. — Vann R. Newkirk Ii, The Atlantic, 28 July 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for perfecting
  1. finishing
  2. improving
  3. completing
  4. enhancing
Verb
  • The Storm were just as bad from three-point range in the second half, finishing four of 22.
    — Assistant Sports Editor, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2026
  • Messi scored eight goals in the recent World Cup, finishing second to France’s Kylian Mbappe in the Golden Boot race and was a big reason Argentina reached the championship match.
    — Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of finishing
Verb
  • Pawloski said Amazon seemed to invest fewer resources into improving MTurk at the same time as more data labeling services arrived, causing many turkers to shift to competing platforms.
    — Annie Palmer, CNBC, 26 Aug. 2026
  • The broader shift is that AI content quality is improving while the barrier to creation is becoming lower.
    — Connie Etemadi, USA Today, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of improving
Verb
  • The Ravens haven’t traditionally kept a third quarterback on the 53-man roster, but Fagnano starred throughout the preseason, completing 75 percent of his passes and throwing for 509 yards and three touchdowns.
    — Jeff Zrebiec, New York Times, 1 Sep. 2026
  • The Appalachian Trail Conservancy defines a thru-hike as completing all of the trail’s sections in any order within a year, allowing for pauses.
    — Holly Ramer, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2026
Definition of completing
Verb
  • The monthly books are chosen by a committee through the Dollywood Foundation with the goal of enhancing early childhood education.
    — Michelle Mullins, Chicago Tribune, 28 Aug. 2026
  • The organization works to champion aspiring and established storytellers by providing events and services, enhancing public awareness and participation and encouraging community partnerships.
    — Isabelle Farina, Variety, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of enhancing

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perfected
perfecting
perfection
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Cite this Entry

“Perfecting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/perfecting. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

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