anticipating

verb

present participle of anticipate
1
as in expecting
to believe in the future occurrence of (something) I anticipate that we'll be seeing you for New Year's

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in foreseeing
to realize or know about beforehand I anticipated this unhelpful response

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 anticipating Fisher comes advertised as a high-IQ linebacker with a knack for anticipating plays before the snap. — Pete Sweeney, Kansas City Star, 20 Oct. 2026 Utilities have no shortage of operational information at hand; the challenge is to connect it with predictive analysis, so operators can move beyond reacting to failures and toward anticipating them. — Charlie Sanchez, Forbes.com, 20 Oct. 2026 The people of the internet—namely, the girlies—couldn’t get enough, matching it to their favorite lip shade and anticipating new colorways. — Elizabeth Gulino, Allure, 20 Oct. 2026 On Monday, fire crews — anticipating a change in wind patterns with the upcoming storm — were working to strengthen containment lines and using drones and thermal imaging cameras to help detect hot spots, including underground, Doran said. — Los Angeles Times, 19 Oct. 2026 Guests who regularly book hotels and short-term rentals now arrive at private homes anticipating the same baseline. — Lauren Schuster, Miami Herald, 19 Oct. 2026 Attorneys who specialize in the field are anticipating disputes over the contractual framework in the future. — Tobias Burns, CNBC, 16 Oct. 2026 Some strategists, anticipating that the committee may raise flags, now try to get ahead of the process by submitting additional documentation, including filmmaker quotes and source materials, to explain why a film belongs in its intended category. — Clayton Davis, Variety, 15 Oct. 2026 What if, by anticipating the regulatory frameworks by a few years, companies could also unlock more business-minded features? — Martino Carrera, Footwear News, 9 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for anticipating
  1. expecting
  2. foreseeing
  3. awaiting
  4. predicting
Verb
  • Amenities and experiences I arrived at Saltus expecting a base for exploring the Dolomites, but the hotel itself quickly became the main event.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 22 Oct. 2026
  • So Patriots owner Robert Kraft and Jets owner Woody Johnson probably weren’t expecting to be roasted by Gaffigan.
    — Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of expecting
Verb
  • Nate Davis does the honors again, foreseeing the winners of all 272 regular-season games to propose win-loss records for all 32 teams.
    — Jim Reineking, USA Today, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Nevertheless, Patel remains optimistic, foreseeing a future where human creativity and critical thinking combine with AI's potential for endless possibilities.
    — Michael Ashley, Forbes.com, 2 July 2026
Definition of foreseeing
Verb
  • According to PitchBook, there have been 504 defense PE deals but just 101 exits since 2021, although the comparison includes add-on acquisitions and therefore does not directly measure the proportion of investments awaiting an exit.
    — Elsa Ohlen, CNBC, 26 Oct. 2026
  • CharlotteFive has reached out to the chain for an update and is awaiting a response.
    — Tanasia Kenney, Charlotte Observer, 26 Oct. 2026
Definition of awaiting
Verb
  • Next year will see more classic accessories used in less traditional ways with Whatnot predicting shoppers will reuse pieces that are in their own closets.
    — Kanika Talwar, Footwear News, 21 Oct. 2026
  • When the year started, investors were predicting a slew of AI companies going public, including SpaceX, Anthropic and OpenAI.
    — Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of predicting

Browse Nearby Words

anticipates
anticipating
anticipation
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Anticipating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/anticipating. Accessed 29 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of shindig

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
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
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All