SWIMMING Synonyms: 32 Similar and Opposite Words

swimming

verb

Definition of swimming

present participle of swim

as in spinning

to be in a confused state as if from being twirled around his head was swimming after he was given so much information on his first day at the new job

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in sailing

to rest or move along the surface of a liquid or in the air there appeared to be an oily film swimming on the water

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 swimming Recently, a local fisherman captured a video of dolphins swimming in the Long Island Sound off the coast of Westbrook that was shared all over social media. — Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 31 Aug. 2026 Whether burrowing through soil or swimming through water, they’re forced to maneuver through narrow gaps in tiny pores, rocks, roots, plants or other obstacles. — K. R. Prathyusha, The Conversation, 31 Aug. 2026 Sixteen beaches are not recommended for swimming by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. — Lucia Cheng, Des Moines Register, 28 Aug. 2026 The South Carolina Department of Natural Resources confirmed a person was bitten by an alligator while swimming in the Savannah River and said wildlife biologists and law enforcement responded to the scene. — Emily Shapiro, ABC News, 27 Aug. 2026 Nine-foot stainless-steel screens, originally designed to keep fish from swimming into dams, were reshaped into curved, airfoil-like vanity doors. — David Caraccio, Sacbee.com, 26 Aug. 2026 After not swimming for 30 years, Kellie also returned to the water. — Susan Young, PEOPLE, 26 Aug. 2026 The Louisiana Department of Health announced last week a resident had likely contracted the organism, known as Naegleria fowleri, while swimming in Lake Claiborne which is about 30 miles northwest of Ruston. — Diego Mendoza, CNN Money, 24 Aug. 2026 Lillian Smart, an 8-year-old girl who health officials believe contracted a brain-eating amoeba while swimming in a northern Louisiana lake, died Saturday at a Ruston hospital from an infection linked to the pathogen. — Brittany Miller, FOXNews.com, 24 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for swimming

Verb

Conventional gas centrifuges use spinning mechanical rotors to push heavier atoms outward.

— Aman Tripathi, Interesting Engineering, 28 Aug. 2026
And get ready for a scene that will hopefully not leave your head spinning the same way that the Earth spins on its axis.

— Georg Szalai, HollywoodReporter, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of spinning

Verb

The tanker was sailing in the southern shipping lane close to the Omani coast, the UK Maritime Trade Operations agency said in a post on Tuesday, Asia time.

— Anniek Bao, CNBC, 1 Sep. 2026
Yet the language, always extraordinarily resilient, is again sailing toward new horizons in the 21st century.

— Ilan Stavans, The Conversation, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of sailing

Verb

Parton didn’t stop with Dollywood By the early 1990s, Parton created The Dollywood Foundation with the goal of decreasing the high school drop out rate in Sevier County, which was hovering around 30%.

— Kimberlee Kruesi, Fortune, 27 Aug. 2026
By dawn, the crew had slotted the house into place on its new site, hovering on timber cribbing.

— Nicola Twilley, New Yorker, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of hovering

Verb

His summer project with the Boardwalk is all about nurturing diplomatic relations between the US and Italy by playing the role of approachable host on the immaculate floating mansion.

— CNN Money, CNN Money, 27 Aug. 2026
Further analysis doubtless awaits, after the semi-submersible hauler vessel — so called because its deck goes underwater beneath heavy floating payloads, then rises up with them on board — arrives in Texas.

— Mike Wall, Space.com, 27 Aug. 2026

Definition of floating

Verb

The generation with the most to lose The clearest evidence that confidence and competence are drifting apart shows up in the generational data.

— Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 25 Aug. 2026
Dark, light-absorbing particles turn into light-scattering particles, transforming dark, dense plumes into the milky white haze seen drifting across the eastern skies.

— Michael A. Robinson, The Conversation, 25 Aug. 2026

Definition of drifting

Browse Nearby Words

swim

swimming

swimmingly

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

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

Copy Citation

Synonyms of swimming

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster on swimming

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

dissonant

Popular in Grammar & Usage

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

Popular in Wordplay

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

Popular

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

Games & Quizzes