droning

verb

present participle of drone
1
as in humming
to fly, turn, or move rapidly with a fluttering or vibratory sound the sound of droning bees all around us

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in idling
to spend time doing nothing instead of getting a job, he preferred to drone and live off his parents

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 droning Instead, there’s a surplus of annoying, droning noise. — Luke Cyphers, Sportico.com, 11 June 2026 Here, a morning coffee on the sea-view private sun terrace comes complete with diving swifts and droning dragonflies, not to mention the sound of pulling tides. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 6 May 2026 There’s no sound more evocative of summer than that of an old-school ice cream maker’s motor droning its monotonous naaaaaaaa with the backbeat of gas station ice and rock salt grinding and shifting against the spinning ice cream cannister. — Josh Miller, Southern Living, 31 May 2026 The album opens with droning, distorted guitars, a funereal chug enlivened by unexpectedly gargantuan drums. — Philip Sherburne, Pitchfork, 18 Mar. 2026 The sound of tattoo machines droning at different pitches filled the air at the fifth annual Capitol City Classic tattoo convention, on Saturday afternoon, the second day of its three-day run. — Camila Pedrosa, Sacbee.com, 14 June 2026 Teak Didgeridoo Didgeridoos are wind instruments originating from Indigenous Australian culture and are typically used for rhythmic, droning sound production. — Michele Laufik, Martha Stewart, 9 Apr. 2026 The conventional gearbox also avoids the droning often associated with continuously variable transmissions (CVTs). — New Atlas, 29 Mar. 2026 The constant, incessant, droning sounds in between each pitch that blare from the sound system are manufactured slop, screeching ‘NEW YORKKKKKKKK! — Chris Kirschner, New York Times, 22 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for droning
  1. humming
  2. idling
  3. buzzing
  4. chilling
  5. lounging
  6. playing
  7. dawdling
  8. loafing
Verb
  • Increasingly, the crux of the debate around AI’s sustainability has been focused on data centers, which make the nebulous concept of AI very concrete with their massive, humming warehouses full of servers and huge energy requirements.
    — Sasha Luccioni, Time, 3 July 2026
  • Project Bluestem Data centers emit humming sounds from generators, fans and other equipment.
    — Alexa Newsom, Kansas City Star, 2 July 2026
Definition of humming
Verb
  • At the same time, the sounds of idling diesel work truck engines have replaced that of dozens of fire trucks that had been stationed there for days.
    — Jazmin Alvarado, Los Angeles Times, 26 June 2026
  • The second album this year from metalcore pioneers Converge is named for a mysterious, pulsing, low-frequency ambient drone, likened by those who hear it to a diesel engine, an idling airplane, or a kind of inescapable torture.
    — Alex Robert Ross, Pitchfork, 24 June 2026
Definition of idling
Verb
  • Vic makes some baffling choices here, buzzing in twice on the first word in the series without hearing the rest, and getting eliminated from multiple rounds five seconds in.
    — Tasha Robinson, Vulture, 30 June 2026
  • Between record-setting parades, military flyovers, and fireworks on the National Mall, the district will be buzzing on Independence Day.
    — Molly Parks, The Washington Examiner, 28 June 2026
Definition of buzzing
Verb
  • These can be made into a wafer shape as well by shaping the dough into logs and chilling it before making 1/4-inch-thick slices.
    — Patricia S York, Southern Living, 4 July 2026
  • Ten days after Guthrie was reported missing, the FBI released chilling doorbell camera images of an armed and masked man outside her home on the morning of her disappearance.
    — Adela Suliman, NBC news, 2 July 2026
Definition of chilling
Verb
  • Unlike during recovery months when high-intensity skiing and snowboarding take precedence, the remainder of the year is much more focused on lounging, pampering and connecting with other guests.
    — Dahvi Shira, Forbes.com, 30 June 2026
  • An old recording studio, still adorned with a grand piano, now exists more as a lounging space.
    — Noah Haggerty, Los Angeles Times, 29 June 2026
Definition of lounging
Verb
  • Win prizes playing interactive games, network with artists and entrepreneurs and enjoy signature drinks and bar snacks available for purchase.
    — Lesly Gregory, AJC.com, 1 July 2026
  • Men leaders can pay attention to and be mindful of who in the workplace may be playing more of an emotional support role that falls outside their job description.
    — Holly Corbett, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026
Definition of playing
Verb
  • Indeed, Ederson has moments where he can be caught dawdling with the ball, hoping for an opening that doesn’t always arrive.
    — Carl Anka, New York Times, 5 June 2026
  • Further, there’s no excuse for Congress to continue dawdling on farm policy.
    — The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 25 Aug. 2025
Definition of dawdling
Verb
  • Martin removed his right fielder for loafing on a ball hit to the outfield.
    — Assistant Sports Editor, Los Angeles Times, 18 June 2026
  • Kids who used to run to the field excited to play, suddenly started loafing to the field wearing their crocs with their heads buried in their phones.
    — Joe Kinsey OutKick, FOXNews.com, 1 June 2026
Definition of loafing

Browse Nearby Words

drones
droning
drool
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Cite this Entry

“Droning.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/droning. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of droning for Spanish Speakers

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