WATCHING Synonyms: 117 Similar and Opposite Words

watching

verb

present participle of watch

as in observing

to keep one's eyes on I turned my head to continue watching the bird as it flew away

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in following

to take notice of and be guided by watch what I do when I run into that kind of problem

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in monitoring

to pay continued close attention to (something) for a particular purpose watched the situation to see if it improved

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as in caring

to have an interest or concern for you should watch what you eat if you want a long, healthy life

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in supervising

to take charge of especially on behalf of another hired a high school girl to watch their daughter until they got home from work

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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 watching Instead, he’s spent August anxiously watching the orange skies from his house in the northern Nevada hills through two consecutive and adjacent wild-land fires, the Bug and Hawk Fires. — Anya Kamenetz, Curbed, 28 Aug. 2026 Owen Wolff, 21, was just a small child back then, watching his father play for MLS glory and represent America with the United States Men’s National Team. — Pj Green august 28, Kansas City Star, 28 Aug. 2026 Sale continued to win the hearts and minds of the 39,650 fans at Truist Park, and the thousands more watching elsewhere. — Chad Bishop, AJC.com, 28 Aug. 2026 Interested in watching a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket propel the telescope to space? — Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2026 Jolene In Jolene, released in 1974, Parton’s lyrics capture the torment of watching your lover flirt with someone else. — Wendy Hargreaves, Fortune, 28 Aug. 2026 And then soup turned into Chick-fil-A, and watching that happen was fun. — James Grebey, Vulture, 28 Aug. 2026 Here are 10 players worth watching in Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte on Friday night. — Alex Zietlow, Charlotte Observer, 28 Aug. 2026 The conversations that the screening started showed Teng that people are becoming more perceptive to watching stories from Palestine. — Matt Minton, Variety, 21 Aug. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for watching

Verb

The violations on the report include employees not having a food handler card, as well as no drain plugs being seen when observing the plumbing.

— Rashad Alexander, Kansas City Star, 25 Aug. 2026
With the capability of observing the cosmos with a wide field of view, Roman will generate first-of-their-kind images to help astronomers explore some of the greatest mysteries, including the unexplained expansion of the universe, according to NASA.

— Eric Lagatta, USA Today, 25 Aug. 2026

Definition of observing

Verb

Now his focus is on following in his parents’ footsteps working with the Children’s Institute, an organization that supports children and families.

— Marlene Lenthang, NBC news, 28 Aug. 2026
Analysts note that following SpaceX's record-breaking IPO last month, investor interest in commercial spaceflight and the broader space sector has risen steadily.

— , CNBC, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of following

Verb

The remaining Eagles stopped caring about the tug-of-war between art and commerce; for the next five decades, money ruled.

— Grayson Haver Currin, Pitchfork, 30 Aug. 2026
In many cases, the robot tail wags the living dog by tricking it—tricking us—into caring about obscure metrics, then gamifying the process of improving them.

— Hillary Busis, Vanity Fair, 28 Aug. 2026

Definition of caring

Verb

Not wanting to go through a repeat of uncertainty for FY27, Roman mission management began eyeing faster routes to the launch pad.

— Josh Dinner, Space.com, 27 Aug. 2026
The boom has in turn pushed companies to IPO, including Chinese champion DeepSeek, which the South China Morning Post reported is eyeing a 2027 debut.

— Jeronimo Gonzalez, semafor.com, 26 Aug. 2026

Definition of eyeing

Verb

In line with that argument, reporting on California’s latest lawsuit underscores how central mail-in ballots have become, noting that more than 89% of voters used mail ballots in the state’s June primary.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 31 Aug. 2026
But Crabtree rejected his request, noting that his financial resources included the two homes — one valued at $792,000 that carried no mortgage — two debt-free cars and $36,000 a month in pensions.

— Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star, 31 Aug. 2026

Definition of noting

Verb

Pack a tube of petroleum jelly (Vaseline) in your first aid kit instead of antibiotic ointment and remember to flush all scrapes and cuts with copious amounts of clean water before covering them with the jelly.

— Dr. Jill Grimes, CNN Money, 29 Aug. 2026
Ground surveys can provide more detailed information at a particular site, but covering an entire subway corridor that way would be difficult.

— Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 29 Aug. 2026