waddling

verb

present participle of waddle
as in lurching
to move forward while swaying from side to side the duck waddled back into the water we watched the penguins waddle over the ice together

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 waddling Think penguins waddling back to the same partner each breeding season. — Samantha Agate, Charlotte Observer, 13 Apr. 2026 Inside the house, a plastic bin in the TV room held a striped emu chick, waddling under a heat lamp. — Burkhard Bilger, New Yorker, 29 June 2026 Once all of the ducklings were tucked into the basket, the animals were carried to a nearby canal, with their mother waddling behind them. — Moná Thomas, PEOPLE, 28 May 2026 The only telltale sign of what lies below the surface is a metal set of stairs, leading into the icy blue channel, and small groups of divers and snorkelers waddling across the gravel paths in full gear. — Carinne Geil Botta, Travel + Leisure, 16 May 2026 Once considered delightfully kitschy relics of suburban Americana, porch geese are waddling their way back into the spotlight. — Wendy Rose Gould, Martha Stewart, 29 May 2026 In less than two weeks, Merlín went from waddling through the streets of Mexico City during Mexico's opening victory to visiting the presidential palace. — ABC News, 24 June 2026 The Quiet Tragedy of the Bottle-Fed Fawn Imprinting is one of those words people toss around casually, usually attached to baby ducks waddling after a researcher. — Hanna Wickes, Miami Herald, 28 Apr. 2026 Yet one place that Merlin is allowed is inside Mexican leader Claudia Sheinbaum’s presidential palace, waddling onto stage on Monday morning for her daily briefing. — Jack Lang, New York Times, 26 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for waddling
  1. lurching
  2. staggering
  3. shuffling
  4. weaving
  5. tottering
  6. rolling
  7. stomping
Verb
  • The same boom-and-bust dependency on the oil industry, whose profits were now funnelled through the regime and its allies, kept the country lurching from one crisis to the next.
    — Armando Ledezma, New Yorker, 30 June 2026
  • The old guard of the Democratic Party suffered another body blow when three socialist congressional candidates in New York with anti-Israel platforms swept to victory, lurching the party even further to the left.
    — Joe Battenfeld, Boston Herald, 25 June 2026
Definition of lurching
Verb
  • The works depicted broken figures staggering toward the viewer in ragged uniforms — in distorted sizes, giant hands and small heads.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 1 May 2026
  • The works depicted broken figures staggering toward the viewer in ragged uniforms — in distorted sizes, giant hand and small heads.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 1 May 2026
Definition of staggering
Verb
  • Enola dutifully trudges between clues and possibilities, shuffling through crime scenes and racing around shady spaces, all of this much more paint-by-numbers than connect-the-dots.
    — Kate Erbland, IndieWire, 30 June 2026
  • Colombia is trying its luck from distance, but Costa has been equal to each shot, first punching away Jefferson Lerma's rocket from the right, about 25 yards out, and then shuffling his feet to his left and catching Jhon Arias's shot from about the same distance.
    — NBC News, NBC news, 28 June 2026
Definition of shuffling
Verb
  • Following the mini concert, attendees dispersed across the property, gathering around a massive outdoor fireplace and weaving through the home’s stylish interiors.
    — Vogue, Vogue, 6 July 2026
  • Some riders gallivant and whoosh past bystanders, weaving in and out and putting surrounding passersby on edge.
    — Doug Turnbull, AJC.com, 5 July 2026
Definition of weaving
Verb
  • In an accompanying cartoon, Spark is caricatured as a sulking giant, tottering above the Tuscan countryside in a pair of high heels.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 9 June 2026
  • Among them a City boy wearing three Fit-Bit-type devices, two beautiful Middle Eastern sisters, an outrageously pompous elderly American (sorry; eavesdropping), and several Imelda Marcos lookalikes, tottering out of the treatment rooms with, somehow, their elaborate hairstyles still intact.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 2 June 2026
Definition of tottering
Verb
  • When Doncic played for the Dallas Mavericks and led them to the 2024 NBA Finals, his two centers — Derek Lively and Daniel Gafford — were exceptional in their roles as lob threats, blocking shots and rolling to the rim.
    — Broderick Turner, Los Angeles Times, 1 July 2026
  • All year, the coastline is a unique, peaceful, and untouched place, thanks to its state park status (no one’s rolling a cooler and beach umbrella onto these rocks).
    — Kelsey Glennon, Southern Living, 30 June 2026
Definition of rolling
Verb
  • The name Chelydra serpentina evokes colossal reptiles stomping through ancient forests.
    — Hannah Smith July 1, Idaho Statesman, 1 July 2026
  • That feeling solidified during their solo date, which included stomping grapes, exploring a winery and making a promise to open a special bottle of wine together one year later.
    — Deirdre Durkan, PEOPLE, 10 June 2026
Definition of stomping

Browse Nearby Words

waddles
waddling
waddy
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Cite this Entry

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

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Nglish: Translation of waddling for Spanish Speakers

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