shimmying

verb

present participle of shimmy
1
as in clambering

Related Words

Relevance
2
as in bopping

Related Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for shimmying
  1. clambering
  2. bopping
  3. swarming
  4. shuffling
  5. scrambling
  6. jigging
  7. scrabbling
  8. jiving
Verb
  • There must have been a hundred of us there, circling the truck, clambering onto its hood, shuffling and shimmying and twerking with abandon.
    — Taran Dugal, New Yorker, 30 Aug. 2026
  • The field was narrowed to eight contestants who competed before the president on Tuesday night, clambering through a Ninja Warrior–style obstacle course while wearing red, white, and blue.
    — Matt Viser, The Atlantic, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of clambering
Verb
  • Carlile is having a total blast smiling and bopping through it, and bandmates Maren Morris, Amanda Shires, and Natalie Hemby’s harmonies are divine.
    — Rebecca Alter, Vulture, 25 Aug. 2026
  • These remote gigs are particularly appealing to international youngsters who wander the world, bopping from country to country.
    — Andrew Zucker, HollywoodReporter, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of bopping
Verb
  • Tens of thousands of Afghans swarming Abbey Gate, their only way out after Kabul fell and the Taliban returned to power.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 30 Aug. 2026
  • After that, chaos erupted, with dozens of masked people swarming the business.
    — Lesley Marin, CBS News, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of swarming
Verb
  • The bull riders—including the current champion, 20-year-old John Crimber—stand with their cowboy hat over their heart, boots shuffling nervously in the dirt.
    — Christine Lennon, Condé Nast Traveler, 30 Aug. 2026
  • There must have been a hundred of us there, circling the truck, clambering onto its hood, shuffling and shimmying and twerking with abandon.
    — Taran Dugal, New Yorker, 30 Aug. 2026
Definition of shuffling
Verb
  • Svedin said that as they were headed for the bridge, people were scrambling to beat the rising water.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 31 Aug. 2026
  • The rest of the family is now scrambling to find information from various sources.
    — Jessie Yeung, CNN Money, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of scrambling
Verb
  • Fishing for striped bass near this kind of structure can be productive in the summer and fall, sometimes by employing vertical jigging with hefty spoons or soft plastics to entice fish patrolling the bottom.
    — Ken Perrotte, USA Today, 4 Aug. 2026
  • The customers lined the rails, shoulder to shoulder, all jigging in unison to the classic rock that was blasting from the radio.
    — Matthew Every, Outdoor Life, 8 July 2026
Definition of jigging
Verb
  • The retaliation works, and soon Cole and his men are marching on foot, scrabbling their way through thickets and swamps.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026
  • In addition, its luxury pricing will turn off many hobbyists and content creators who are scrabbling to make ends meet.
    — Jim Fisher, PC Magazine, 25 June 2026
Definition of scrabbling
Verb
  • There’s no games, no shucking and jiving, everybody is really bringing their A-game.
    — Arushi Jacob, Variety, 15 May 2026
Definition of jiving
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

shimmy
shimmying
shin
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Shimmying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/shimmying. 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’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

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

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

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

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

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

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

Popular

See More

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

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
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