as in bowing
bending downward or forward
faded, drooping banners lining the walls of the old gym
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in flagging
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
1
as in hanging
to be limp from lack of water or vigor
the flowers drooped on their stalks in the blazing sun
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in sagging
to lose bodily strength or vigor
as the afternoon wore on, we started to droop
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Recent Examples of drooping
Wendy Rose Gould,
Martha Stewart,
29 June 2026
If the arteries are leading to the brain, symptoms may involve sudden numbness or weakness in the arms or legs, trouble speaking, slurred speech, sudden or temporary vision loss in one eye or facial drooping.
—
Charles Trepany,
USA Today,
6 May 2026
Engineers hired by the association reported concrete defects, a drooping balcony, loose fire sprinkler joints causing leaks, and corrosion and cracks in the seawall.
—
Larry Seward,
CBS News,
1 May 2026
Right whales, with their characteristic drooping dorsal fin, are most often seen along the Eastern Seaboard, but over the past few years two of them were spotted in the Gulf, one with a calf.
—
Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board,
The Orlando Sentinel,
8 Apr. 2026
If the plant’s leaves start turning yellow, drooping, or curling, that is an indication of overwatering.
—
Charlie Vargas,
Oc Register,
18 Mar. 2026
Curling, drooping, or yellowing leaves can indicate overwatering, while drooping and wilting leaves indicate underwatering.
—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
7 Mar. 2026
Low indoor humidity and sudden temperature changes can cause drooping stems.
—
Leanne Potts,
Better Homes & Gardens,
22 Feb. 2026
The ship was said to have experienced weakening metal parts that eventually fully fractured from the waves; and intense pressure at the ship's midsection that caused drooping of the bow and stern all combined with severe weather, according to the Presque Isle County Historical Museum.
—
Sarah Moore,
Freep.com,
4 Nov. 2025
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
30 June 2026
North says to keep the soil moist and watch for drooping leaves, which indicate your tree needs a drink.
—
Madeline Buiano,
Martha Stewart,
25 June 2026
Heavy-duty gloves, paired up on polished surfaces or drooping from metal racks, tend to stand in for hands.
—
Eren Orbey,
New Yorker,
23 June 2026
Now the girls, with their useless prop hats drooping sadly over their foreheads, are forced to watch strangers in even cuter outfits than theirs (according to Jen) doing body rolls all over the boys the main-villa girls have only just managed to wrangle into something like a relationship.
—
Kathleen Walsh,
Vulture,
22 June 2026
Amaranth is available in drooping varieties or upright flower forms, makes an excellent addition to a dahlia bouquet, and is large enough to hold its own in the dahlia bed.
—
Andy Wilcox,
Better Homes & Gardens,
20 June 2026
Observe black cockatoos preen in the drooping she-oaks, or marvel at the Dali-esque outback, filled with its skeletal mallee trees.
—
Todd Plummer,
Robb Report,
19 June 2026
Stamfordham, a military veteran with a thick drooping mustache and receding hairline, sat down at his desk in Windsor Castle on April 17 and penned a note to the War Office.
—
Literary Hub,
16 June 2026
Affected babies may show symptoms including constipation, poor feeding, drooping eyelid, sluggish pupils, low muscle tone, difficulty sucking and swallowing, weak or altered crying, difficulty breathing, and generalized weakness.
—
Kerry Breen,
CBS News,
14 June 2026
Noun
This helps support the weight of the lights and minimizes drooping.
—
Wendy Rose Gould,
Martha Stewart,
29 June 2026
If the arteries are leading to the brain, symptoms may involve sudden numbness or weakness in the arms or legs, trouble speaking, slurred speech, sudden or temporary vision loss in one eye or facial drooping.
—
Charles Trepany,
USA Today,
6 May 2026
Engineers hired by the association reported concrete defects, a drooping balcony, loose fire sprinkler joints causing leaks, and corrosion and cracks in the seawall.
—
Larry Seward,
CBS News,
1 May 2026
Right whales, with their characteristic drooping dorsal fin, are most often seen along the Eastern Seaboard, but over the past few years two of them were spotted in the Gulf, one with a calf.
—
Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board,
The Orlando Sentinel,
8 Apr. 2026
If the plant’s leaves start turning yellow, drooping, or curling, that is an indication of overwatering.
—
Charlie Vargas,
Oc Register,
18 Mar. 2026
Curling, drooping, or yellowing leaves can indicate overwatering, while drooping and wilting leaves indicate underwatering.
—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
7 Mar. 2026
Low indoor humidity and sudden temperature changes can cause drooping stems.
—
Leanne Potts,
Better Homes & Gardens,
22 Feb. 2026
The ship was said to have experienced weakening metal parts that eventually fully fractured from the waves; and intense pressure at the ship's midsection that caused drooping of the bow and stern all combined with severe weather, according to the Presque Isle County Historical Museum.
—
Sarah Moore,
Freep.com,
4 Nov. 2025
Verb
Look for wilting, drooping, discolored, or diseased leaves regularly to keep up the plant’s appearance.
—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
30 June 2026
North says to keep the soil moist and watch for drooping leaves, which indicate your tree needs a drink.
—
Madeline Buiano,
Martha Stewart,
25 June 2026
Heavy-duty gloves, paired up on polished surfaces or drooping from metal racks, tend to stand in for hands.
—
Eren Orbey,
New Yorker,
23 June 2026
Now the girls, with their useless prop hats drooping sadly over their foreheads, are forced to watch strangers in even cuter outfits than theirs (according to Jen) doing body rolls all over the boys the main-villa girls have only just managed to wrangle into something like a relationship.
—
Kathleen Walsh,
Vulture,
22 June 2026
Amaranth is available in drooping varieties or upright flower forms, makes an excellent addition to a dahlia bouquet, and is large enough to hold its own in the dahlia bed.
—
Andy Wilcox,
Better Homes & Gardens,
20 June 2026
Observe black cockatoos preen in the drooping she-oaks, or marvel at the Dali-esque outback, filled with its skeletal mallee trees.
—
Todd Plummer,
Robb Report,
19 June 2026
Stamfordham, a military veteran with a thick drooping mustache and receding hairline, sat down at his desk in Windsor Castle on April 17 and penned a note to the War Office.
—
Literary Hub,
16 June 2026
Affected babies may show symptoms including constipation, poor feeding, drooping eyelid, sluggish pupils, low muscle tone, difficulty sucking and swallowing, weak or altered crying, difficulty breathing, and generalized weakness.
—
Kerry Breen,
CBS News,
14 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for drooping
Adjective
-
James O’Donoghue, a planetary scientist with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, likened our planet’s tilting phenomenon to a nodding head.
Noun
-
And how some close to him bristled when asked questions about his authoritarian streak and his departure from organizing, distractions that left the union’s power flagging.
-
But among the favorite cyclical sectors entering the year, only industrials have truly continued to lead, with financials and consumer discretionary flagging.
Verb
-
Offside was brought in to stop ‘goal hanging’ in the sport’s early years, which had created the unedifying spectacle of players perpetually crowding the goalkeeper.
-
Other footage showed residents sheltering near a metro station as strikes hit the capital, as well as heavy damage across Kyiv, including residential buildings torn apart and thick smoke hanging over parts of the city.
Verb
-
An InStyle writer recommends the RoC Derm Correxion Retinol Firming Serum Stick for her grandma’s sagging turkey neck.
-
Meanwhile, sagging electrical lines threatened to bring some rail services to a standstill.
Adjective
-
And every day, across from them, outside the clinic, about to enter or just leaving, there were women hugging each other and weeping.
-
The show manages to stay on the brink — always laughing, never quite weeping — for its entire length.
Noun
-
Like Rocky Balboa and Apollo Creed fighting to exhaustion, the two aging legends will look to do the same with a round-of-16 spot on the line.
-
That gap between outward performance and inward exhaustion is what causes many owners to question their own judgment.
Verb
-
More than a week after the disaster, search-and-rescue operations remain active, though hopes of finding additional survivors are rapidly fading.
-
Thousands remain missing more than a week after the twin earthquakes struck Venezuela and hope for finding survivors is fading into and effort to recover remains.
Noun
-
In recent days, young Knicks fans have been made to digest from their dreary Boomer elders heavy doses of old-timey hoops lore, but mainly about the 1970 title series, featuring Willis Reed’s limping, yet noble appearance in Game Seven, his injured leg shot up with painkillers.
-
Carter did not look good limping off the practice field.
Cite this Entry
“Drooping.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/drooping. Accessed 5 Jul. 2026.
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