1
as in coming up
to come near or nearer
the eagle closed in on its prey
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in darkening
to grow dark
with evening closing in we knew we had to find shelter fairly soon
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 closing in
Mullins fed him the ball with the clock running out, but Karaban, with two defenders closing in, dished it back to the freshman who hadn’t made a three the whole game.
—
Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 3 Apr. 2026
Meanwhile, in Seattle, Amanda was closing in on the person who hit her business.
—Rich Schapiro, NBC news, 3 Apr. 2026
DeRozan is closing in on Dominique Wilkins (26,668) and Oscar Robertson (26,710) with eight games remaining in the season.
—Jason Anderson, Sacbee.com, 27 Mar. 2026
The Nasdaq extended losses after closing in correction territory Thursday.
—John Towfighi, CNN Money, 27 Mar. 2026
This problem isn’t isolated to Rolla – child care providers are closing in other rural areas.
—Beth Kania-Gosche, The Conversation, 19 Mar. 2026
Now, the program is closing in on UIL history.
—Myah Taylor, Dallas Morning News, 13 Mar. 2026
As the Mideast conflict involving Iran and the United States continues, the average gas price across the state has rushed past $3 a gallon, and is closing in on $4.
—Miami Herald, 13 Mar. 2026
Anthropic’s Claude has taken off in the enterprise while OpenAI’s ChatGPT has hit big with the masses, closing in on a billion users.
—Reed Albergotti, semafor.com, 13 Feb. 2026
Dom Amore, Hartford Courant, 3 Apr. 2026
Meanwhile, in Seattle, Amanda was closing in on the person who hit her business.
—Rich Schapiro, NBC news, 3 Apr. 2026
DeRozan is closing in on Dominique Wilkins (26,668) and Oscar Robertson (26,710) with eight games remaining in the season.
—Jason Anderson, Sacbee.com, 27 Mar. 2026
The Nasdaq extended losses after closing in correction territory Thursday.
—John Towfighi, CNN Money, 27 Mar. 2026
This problem isn’t isolated to Rolla – child care providers are closing in other rural areas.
—Beth Kania-Gosche, The Conversation, 19 Mar. 2026
Now, the program is closing in on UIL history.
—Myah Taylor, Dallas Morning News, 13 Mar. 2026
As the Mideast conflict involving Iran and the United States continues, the average gas price across the state has rushed past $3 a gallon, and is closing in on $4.
—Miami Herald, 13 Mar. 2026
Anthropic’s Claude has taken off in the enterprise while OpenAI’s ChatGPT has hit big with the masses, closing in on a billion users.
—Reed Albergotti, semafor.com, 13 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for closing in
Verb
-
May came to the Wolverines after running the program at Florida Atlantic University, taking that program to the Final Four in 2023 and coming up one buzzer-beater shy of playing for a national title.—
Kyle Feldscher,
CNN Money,
3 Apr. 2026
-
Home surveillance video from the incident shows the coyote coming up to the young child and biting them before running off.—
Chelsea Hylton,
CBS News,
3 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The image below shows the SLS freeing itself of Earth, hauling the Artemis 2 mission to the darkening skies above Florida.—
Robert Lea,
Space.com,
2 Apr. 2026
-
This linen-blend pinch pleated option is light-filtering—in other words, not as dense as room-darkening curtains or blackout designs—and available in 38 colors, with curtain rings and rods sold separately.—
Nashia Baker,
Architectural Digest,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
In terms of water availability alone, users along the Salt River system might have little to worry about, compared with the communities drawing on the dwindling Colorado River.—
Shi En Kim,
AZCentral.com,
31 Mar. 2026
-
The idea — drawing on philosopher Nick Bostrom’s concept of differential technological development — is to accelerate the technologies that reduce risk and delay the ones that increase it.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Ryan Gosling headlines Miller and Phil Lord’s film adaption of Andy Weir’s 2021 book of the same name, which centers on a school teacher turned astronaut tasked with stopping a mysterious entity from blacking out the sun.—
Zack Sharf,
Variety,
5 Mar. 2026
-
Any new rules and regulations proposed by the FCC that restrict leagues from paywalling, locally blacking out or spreading live sports content across numerous channels and apps could be challenged in court.—
Michael McCann,
Sportico.com,
4 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Industrie Africa, the continent’s leading online multi-brand fashion retailer, is closing down just five years after launch, highlighting the volatility of the current e-commerce model on a regional and global scale.—
Ezreen Benissan,
Vogue,
2 Apr. 2026
-
Other tips include not leaving pet food outside, not touching or feeding free-roaming animals, keeping yard landscaping trimmed, keeping lids on trash containers, and closing home crawlspaces.—
Julie Sharp,
CBS News,
2 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Those are fighting words, and, in the coming days, the Pope can counter them as much through symbolic acts as through words of peace.—
Paul Elie,
New Yorker,
4 Apr. 2026
-
Harrison, who declined to discuss his friend’s personal life, had a T-shirt made for Friday night’s vigil in Metayer’s honor at Coral Springs City Hall, one of several planned around South Florida in the coming days.—
Amanda Rosa,
Miami Herald,
4 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The approaching Easter holiday often means an increase in the purchase and gifting of live rabbits, and a resulting spike in abandonments.—
Sharon Chin,
CBS News,
2 Apr. 2026
-
It is now believed that Comet MAPS has an orbital period approaching 2,000 years, and may be a fragment of a daylight comet seen in 363 AD.—
Tony Hoffman,
PC Magazine,
2 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
Once called ''the funniest woman on TV,'' Catherine O'Hara spends much of her time these days bellying up against a snooker table at the Squeeze Club, a Toronto juice bar and pool hall.—
Toria Sheffield,
PEOPLE,
31 Jan. 2026
-
Across the river, Le Crocodile at the Wythe Hotel in Williamsburg, Brooklyn brings a stylish, approachable scene for bellying up and indulging in sexy French cuisine.—
Jessica Chapel,
Condé Nast Traveler,
30 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Closing in.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/closing%20in. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
