as in rambling
passing from one topic to another
a meandering interview with the presidential hopeful that covered everything from his family life to his proposed foreign policy
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in wandering
to move about from place to place aimlessly
theatergoers meandering around the lobby waiting for the play to start
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Recent Examples of meandering
Ed Caesar, New Yorker, 30 Apr. 2026
The idea is to reduce wait times and eliminate the kind of meandering routes that often slowed trips under the old system.
—Brian Unger, CBS News, 30 Apr. 2026
The short answer is that nobody knows if any of it—the Trojan War and Odysseus’s subsequent meandering homeward journey—was real.
—Gitanjali Roy, Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Apr. 2026
The royal’s meandering walk was punctuated by handshakes with Justice Stephen Breyer and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine.
—Aidan McLaughlin, Vanity Fair, 29 Apr. 2026
Instead, vignettes provide a meandering exploration, connecting past and present and sketching parallels between father and son.
—Literary Hub, 28 Apr. 2026
Best Hikes Luss Heritage Trail Beginning and ending in the pretty village of Luss, the Luss Heritage Trail passes historic cemeteries, churches, and stone cottages while meandering along rivers and through woodland.
—Andrea Bussell, Travel + Leisure, 24 Apr. 2026
There’s also a separate suite with a gym, infrared sauna, kitchen, and a deck, plus lush green lawns dotted with 40 native fruit trees, meandering pathways, a 40-foot saltwater pool with a spillover spa, and a custom yurt.
—Wendy Bowman, Robb Report, 23 Apr. 2026
As for Ophelia herself, Matthews’ performance hints at the character’s resilience, vulnerability and optimism, but her arc remains hazy, due to the meandering dialogue and lack of a clear plot.
—Emily McClanathan, Chicago Tribune, 21 Apr. 2026
Verb
Detectives located him by following the meandering path of laundry, sent to him by his wife, via multiple messengers.
—Ed Caesar, New Yorker, 30 Apr. 2026
The idea is to reduce wait times and eliminate the kind of meandering routes that often slowed trips under the old system.
—Brian Unger, CBS News, 30 Apr. 2026
The short answer is that nobody knows if any of it—the Trojan War and Odysseus’s subsequent meandering homeward journey—was real.
—Gitanjali Roy, Encyclopedia Britannica, 30 Apr. 2026
The royal’s meandering walk was punctuated by handshakes with Justice Stephen Breyer and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Caine.
—Aidan McLaughlin, Vanity Fair, 29 Apr. 2026
Instead, vignettes provide a meandering exploration, connecting past and present and sketching parallels between father and son.
—Literary Hub, 28 Apr. 2026
Best Hikes Luss Heritage Trail Beginning and ending in the pretty village of Luss, the Luss Heritage Trail passes historic cemeteries, churches, and stone cottages while meandering along rivers and through woodland.
—Andrea Bussell, Travel + Leisure, 24 Apr. 2026
There’s also a separate suite with a gym, infrared sauna, kitchen, and a deck, plus lush green lawns dotted with 40 native fruit trees, meandering pathways, a 40-foot saltwater pool with a spillover spa, and a custom yurt.
—Wendy Bowman, Robb Report, 23 Apr. 2026
As for Ophelia herself, Matthews’ performance hints at the character’s resilience, vulnerability and optimism, but her arc remains hazy, due to the meandering dialogue and lack of a clear plot.
—Emily McClanathan, Chicago Tribune, 21 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for meandering
Adjective
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Mardi is a rambling story, and reviewers were not kind.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 Apr. 2026
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The rambling, low-slung building, containing 200 rooms, including 36 suites, is easy to get lost in.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
23 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The visual of a 450-pound llama in a pirate hat wandering past a Starbucks kiosk is, apparently, just a normal Tuesday at PDX.—
Hanna Wickes,
Sacbee.com,
23 Apr. 2026
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The film follows Airi (Hoshi), a wandering medium who spends her life guiding restless spirits out of the world of the living.—
Jazz Tangcay,
Variety,
22 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Celebrate by roaming the stacks after dark at this festival.—
Deputy Managing Editor,
Los Angeles Times,
28 Apr. 2026
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Fish and wildlife officials advise people to remove bird feeders until the turkeys leave the area and install sprinklers if the wild fowl keep roaming into yards.—
Don Sweeney,
Sacbee.com,
27 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Hyper-stylized and overtly sinister, the new trailer opens on Dakota Johnson drifting through a shadowy, intimate home wearing a silk robe.—
Alison Foreman,
IndieWire,
27 Apr. 2026
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Over 100 radioactive elements, tens of millions of curies, were sent drifting across the continent for 10 days.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
26 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Every once in a while, the TV would display the now ubiquitous images of Suspect One and Suspect Two, who had been caught by surveillance cameras, wearing backpacks and strolling near the finish line moments before the explosions.—
Saïd Sayrafiezadeh,
New Yorker,
26 Apr. 2026
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And with its options for kayaking, standup paddleboarding, sailing, and waterskiing—plus a boardwalk for strolling and sandy beaches for relaxing—Mission Bay Park is a great spot for active families.—
Kara Williams,
USA Today,
25 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Meandering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/meandering. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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