SEARCHING Synonyms: 66 Similar and Opposite Words

searching

verb

present participle of search

as in combing

to look through (as a place) carefully or thoroughly in an effort to find or discover something archaeologists have begun to search the southern end of the valley, where they believe the underground tombs are located

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in exploring

to go into or range over for purposes of discovery the Spanish conquistadors searched vast areas of the Southwest in their quest for the fabled cities of gold

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 searching While searching for a message to share with his team this week, Frost found inspiration from the handful of games that were played this weekend as part of Week 0. — Matt Murschel, The Orlando Sentinel, 31 Aug. 2026 The farm alleges an officer in Polk County shot the donkey while searching for a missing person without permission or warning, according to the Facebook post. — Michelle Del Rey, USA Today, 31 Aug. 2026 But those survivors, who each have harrowing stories of their own, are still searching for answers about their still missing friends, coworkers, and family members. — Jessie Yeung, CNN Money, 31 Aug. 2026 Every team in the NFL is searching for offensive linemen that can be developed, serving as quality depth. — Omar Kelly, Miami Herald, 31 Aug. 2026 But searching for the next PP may be the wrong starting point. — Alice Tonello, Footwear News, 31 Aug. 2026 Then there are the affair-and-breakup songs, tunes where someone is searching for something better, like young musicians heading west to get famous. — Grayson Haver Currin, Pitchfork, 30 Aug. 2026 Dil Maya Lama stood weeping outside the help desk at the hospital, searching for information about her missing 26-year-old brother, a driver for a hydropower company in Rasuwa. — Arkansas Online, 30 Aug. 2026 Though the year-plus-long story line also involved a replacement Batman proving far too lethal to be let loose on Gotham for long, and the original Batman going on a soul-searching quest, what most remember is Bane and Batman’s poor, poor spine. — Daniel Dockery, Vulture, 24 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for searching

Verb

Tips and calls are coming in and investigators are combing through other video, Saucier said.

— Elise Hammond, CNN Money, 22 Aug. 2026
The videos show search crews combing the Pentagon's charred corridors, and interviews with firefighters working to contain the disaster.

— Nicole Fallert, USA Today, 18 Aug. 2026

Definition of combing

Verb

Viral food trends may offer an easy entry point to exploring a new cuisine, said Shereshewsky, but don’t let that overshadow the history of a dish.

— Rebecca Boone, Chicago Tribune, 31 Aug. 2026
Yi offers her readers a dazzling cabinet of curiosities, exploring spirituality, desire and the desperate ways people grasp at each other.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of exploring

Verb

It’s mainly centered on Billie, who is worried about an old Facebook post standing in the way of finding a job.

— Ben Rosenstock, Vulture, 28 Aug. 2026
Elevating a home can take several months, and while this project would foot the entire bill for elevation, the pot of cash does not cover the costs of finding another place to live during construction.

— Alex Harris, Miami Herald, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of finding

Verb

Clinical Trial Recruitment AI can accelerate clinical trial participant matching by scanning records against eligibility criteria, shortening recruitment dramatically.

— Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 28 Aug. 2026
As the children played and the adults talked, Rose kept noticing her husband looking toward the water, scanning the horizon.

— Daryl Austin, USA Today, 26 Aug. 2026

Definition of scanning

Verb

The system is designed to extend cyborg insects’ capabilities beyond simply locating survivors.

— Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 27 Aug. 2026
The Minneapolis police report outlines the response of more than 150 first responders, detailing their movements and actions throughout the day, including locating the 23-year-old suspect, treating victims and clearing rooms inside the church.

— Beret Leone, CBS News, 25 Aug. 2026

Definition of locating

Verb

Anne Dressen, a curator at the Musée d’Art Moderne de Paris, has been researching these questions by surveying hundreds of museum labels and wall texts across Europe and the US.

— Devorah Lauter, ARTnews.com, 28 Aug. 2026
Another goal of the telescope is to spend a month surveying all the stars in the Milky Way galaxy.

— Joe Palca, NPR, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of surveying

Verb

Search aircraft and ships on Tuesday were scouring the area where the cargo ship MV Ocean Winner reportedly sunk Saturday about 276 miles (444 kilometers) from the Paradip coast of India's eastern Odisha state.

— ABC News, ABC News, 25 Aug. 2026
And some local activists and internet sleuths are scouring the hillsides and topo maps trying to determine which properties would benefit most from the recent tree poisonings.

— Jack Dolan, Los Angeles Times, 18 Aug. 2026