LURKING Synonyms: 33 Similar and Opposite Words

lurking

verb

present participle of lurk

as in sneaking

to move about in a sly or secret manner we caught a glimpse of someone lurking around the corner

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

as in hiding

to remain out of sight watch out for snakes lurking in the tall grass

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 lurking Clarke and Henrik Stenson appeared to be in a two-man race, with Mario Tiziani lurking, until none could keep with Sabbatini and his explosive final round. — ABC News, 25 Oct. 2026 The Atlas Group primed viewers to read his documents as unstable, but the later work asks them to contend with shrunken objects, resurrected paintings, and vampires lurking in the archive. — Emily Watlington, ARTnews.com, 25 Oct. 2026 But with danger lurking around every corner, has the Duke’s unchecked ambition finally gone too far? — Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 23 Oct. 2026 Thankfully, there was nothing other than a funky DIY project lurking in the distance. — Jaclyn Cosgrove, Los Angeles Times, 22 Oct. 2026 Unfortunately not, because another issue is lurking around the corner. — Philipp Strasberg, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026 John Willoughby Frank Dillane Dillane’s Willoughby, like Creed-Miles’ Marianne, has more of a darkness lurking beneath. — Reshma Gopaldas, IndieWire, 19 Oct. 2026 Second recording device found CCTV footage allegedly caught Alfozan lurking outside the executive conference room on 10 different days in September alone, Liang noted. — Ashley Belanger, ArsTechnica, 14 Oct. 2026 The most profitable service targets authors lurking outside the notoriously gatekept realm of traditional publishing. — Snigdha Poonam, The Dial, 13 Oct. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for lurking

Verb

For a solid thirty minutes, the candidates defended their honor as the race’s most pro-Israel candidate — at times sneaking in jabs about their opponent.

— Lauren Costantino, Miami Herald, 22 Oct. 2026
But, the heartbreak would come sneaking around the bend over what might be the wildest 20 seconds of recent Big Ten memory, thanks to the insane final few minutes.

— Trey Wallace OutKick, FOXNews.com, 17 Oct. 2026

Definition of sneaking

Verb

Some senators fled while others braced themselves inside the Senate chamber as Officer Eugene Goodman tried to reason with the mob, and Senate staffers barricaded themselves in offices, hiding.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 26 Oct. 2026
Joseph had spent most of the war hiding in the forest with the Bielski partisan force, a Jewish resistance group.

— Lauren Collins, New Yorker, 26 Oct. 2026

Definition of hiding

Verb

The chill was slipping through the cracks in her windows and warps in her 48-year-old trailer.

— Rachel Siegel, CNN Money, 24 Oct. 2026
Several analysts noted that slipping revenue could be offset by accelerating momentum in Tesla's emerging technology verticals in the long-term.

— Liz Napolitano, CNBC, 22 Oct. 2026

Definition of slipping

Verb

Leeds is in the zone here, and because most of the tracks are about the same length and there are no ambient interludes or pop-length counterbalances, the album’s lengthy runtime ends up sliding by pretty easily.

— Daniel Bromfield, Pitchfork, 27 Oct. 2026
Prosecutors said authorities responded to a report of a shattered sliding glass door and significant fire damage inside the home.

— Rosalio Ahumada, Sacbee.com, 27 Oct. 2026

Definition of sliding

Browse Nearby Words

lurkers

lurking

lurks

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Style

“Lurking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lurking. Accessed 28 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of lurking

verb

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