How to Use spelunking in a Sentence

spelunking

noun
  • They love to go spelunking.
  • Her hobbies include hiking, biking, and spelunking.
  • None of this would be possible without a lot of juridical spelunking.
    — Luke Winkie, Wired, 19 Oct. 2021
  • And to his surprise Miller has been intrigued by some of what's been unearthed by the sonic spelunking.
    — Gary Graff, Billboard, 15 June 2018
  • Choose a place that was once wet—and Mars’s now-dry riverbeds, sea basins and ocean floors offer plenty of those—and do your spelunking there.
    — Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 7 Oct. 2021
  • This was fairly straightforward spelunking into a lava tube system at a young volcano.
    — Erik Klemetti, WIRED, 3 May 2011
  • Like diving, spelunking, rock climbing, or cutting a watermelon, too much can go sideways.
    — Mylène Dressler, Longreads, 11 Apr. 2023
  • Accessible by elevator as well as on foot, this might be the perfect place to ease yourself into spelunking.
    — Nicole Clausing, Sunset, 22 Jan. 2018
  • That step was shrinking as piles rose past second-floor windows, alleys became canyons and descents to first-floor doorways became a sort of snowy spelunking.
    — Jason Blevins, The Denver Post, 11 Jan. 2017
  • The tension between Jon and Daenerys continued to build in episode four when the two went on a very romantic spelunking date.
    — Eliana Dockterman, Time, 9 Aug. 2017
  • However, there is one small gem from their most recent spelunking that's worthy of closer examination.
    — Charles P. Pierce, Esquire, 14 July 2017
  • Hop in the car and head to Mauckport in Southern Indiana for an afternoon of spelunking.
    — Maggie Menderski, The Courier-Journal, 12 July 2019
  • The episode on Zion National Park starts out with some of the doctors and scientists rock climbing and spelunking.
    — Rachel Chang, Condé Nast Traveler, 8 Sep. 2024
  • Some have seen their task as psychic spelunking, deep exploratory work that can only be undermined by literary preciousness.
    — Christopher Beha, Harper's magazine, 10 Mar. 2019
  • Neil Marshall's spelunking movie is at once an ode to the power of female friendship, a creature feature and a (wo)man-versus-nature survival tale.
    — Anya Jaremko-Greenwold, The Week Us, theweek, 9 Aug. 2024
  • Neither fresh nor salt water should be an issue at shallow depths for extended periods, however, so snorkeling and spelunking are fine.
    — PCMAG, 19 July 2024
  • Some of the caves, such as the 1,100-foot Dancehall, can be walked through upright, while others require serious spelunking.
    — Anne Olivia Bauso, Travel + Leisure, 26 Apr. 2024
  • If your business is built around one key player, what is your backup plan if they get hit by a bus tomorrow or decide to fully follow their passion for international spelunking?
    — Samuel Johnston, Forbes, 12 Aug. 2022
  • Caving—which is the more extreme cousin to spelunking—is physically and mentally challenging but also adrenaline fueled and just plain fun, too.
    — Heide Brandes, AFAR Media, 15 Oct. 2025
  • The arc of Ancestor Trouble ends up being a subtle move from a process of genealogical spelunking to one of gentle exorcism.
    — Colin Dickey, The New Republic, 21 Mar. 2022
  • With temperate weather that allows for swimming, snorkeling, and forest spelunking, these getaways are also prime locations for napping to the gentle sound of waves by the beach.
    — Skyli Alvarez, Condé Nast Traveler, 17 May 2026
  • Perched on the edge of the Rugova Gorge, Peja serves as base camp for the country’s many outdoor adventures, including via ferratas and spelunking.
    — Cnt Editors, Condé Nast Traveler, 15 Nov. 2023
  • That led to other activities, including basketball, white-water rafting, spelunking, zip-lining and leading hiking groups.
    — Tara Bahrampour, Washington Post, 22 Feb. 2023
  • Meanwhile, Team Targaryen is doing some beach arguing, cave spelunking, and possibly some Theon welcoming.
    — Joanna Robinson, vanityfair.com, 31 July 2017
  • The aloof downtown intellectual, named Luc by her Belgian parents, is a poetic essayist with a magpie mind and a talent for archive spelunking.
    — Carl Swanson, Vulture, 9 Feb. 2024
  • Years later, after much of the world has moved on and From Software is making new games, the Prospectors still go spelunking within Bloodborne with surprising regularity.
    — Patricia Hernandez, The Verge, 20 June 2018
  • National archives, especially Presidential archives, are like a weird form of historical spelunking.
    — Amy Shira Teitel, Discover Magazine, 27 Apr. 2019
  • There are a few caves in the state where an adventurous spelunking Hoosier might happen upon a cavefish, but one of the best ways to see them is to visit the Bluespring Caverns in Lawrence County.
    — Karl Schneider, IndyStar, 17 Sep. 2025
  • His first spelunking expedition there in 1982 ventured into national parklands due west of Nosy Ankao, Miavana’s island.
    — Tom Downey, WSJ, 18 July 2018
  • With the support of husband Seth, Lawrence took an enterprising plunge in October 2011, turning a hobby of antique and thrift store spelunking into a full-fledged resale shop venture.
    — AL.com, 8 May 2017

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'spelunking.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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