1
as in stacking
to lay or throw on top of one another
piled all the clothes on the chair before putting them away
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in crowding
to gather into a closely packed group
the kids piled into the car
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 piling
Literary Hub, 18 May 2026
Martin acknowledged piling bison carcasses in a gulley for erosion control.
—Logan Smith, CBS News, 18 May 2026
Miami-Dade is bracing for another potentially record-breaking sargassum season, with the smelly brown seaweed already piling up on local beaches.
—Amy Reyes, Miami Herald, 18 May 2026
Dusting and wiping down trash cans keeps dirt from piling up and makes deep cleaning easier later.
—Mallory Carra, The Spruce, 18 May 2026
Trying to stay afloat in an expensive city like Paris is tough enough, but piling onto Garance’s gig-economy hurdles is her terminally ill sister, and a romantic life that seems to be going nowhere.
—Tomris Laffly, Variety, 17 May 2026
During Friday's Morning Meeting , Jim disagreed with investors piling into enterprise software stocks with no meaningful catalysts right now, including companies like Workday , ServiceNow , and Club holding Salesforce , following Ackman's disclosure.
—Natasha Abellard, CNBC, 15 May 2026
Avoid piling mulch against the trunk, and make sure the tree is not planted too deeply, which can suffocate roots over time.
—Jessica Safavimehr, Southern Living, 15 May 2026
Your daily routine is getting busier, faster and slightly more chaotic, making this the perfect time to reorganize your schedule, rethink your habits or finally respond to the emails piling up in your inbox.
—Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 15 May 2026
Verb
When Sarah’s eyes moved from the map to the paper piling up in my writing nook marked with the chicken scratchings of a madman, her eyebrows arched to the highest point eyebrows can arch.
—Literary Hub, 18 May 2026
Martin acknowledged piling bison carcasses in a gulley for erosion control.
—Logan Smith, CBS News, 18 May 2026
Miami-Dade is bracing for another potentially record-breaking sargassum season, with the smelly brown seaweed already piling up on local beaches.
—Amy Reyes, Miami Herald, 18 May 2026
Dusting and wiping down trash cans keeps dirt from piling up and makes deep cleaning easier later.
—Mallory Carra, The Spruce, 18 May 2026
Trying to stay afloat in an expensive city like Paris is tough enough, but piling onto Garance’s gig-economy hurdles is her terminally ill sister, and a romantic life that seems to be going nowhere.
—Tomris Laffly, Variety, 17 May 2026
During Friday's Morning Meeting , Jim disagreed with investors piling into enterprise software stocks with no meaningful catalysts right now, including companies like Workday , ServiceNow , and Club holding Salesforce , following Ackman's disclosure.
—Natasha Abellard, CNBC, 15 May 2026
Avoid piling mulch against the trunk, and make sure the tree is not planted too deeply, which can suffocate roots over time.
—Jessica Safavimehr, Southern Living, 15 May 2026
Your daily routine is getting busier, faster and slightly more chaotic, making this the perfect time to reorganize your schedule, rethink your habits or finally respond to the emails piling up in your inbox.
—Valerie Mesa, PEOPLE, 15 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for piling
Noun
-
That film generated some moody power before collapsing into a pile of surrealist-horror shards.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
20 May 2026
-
Cut it up into its individual paragraphs and then put these pieces of paper in a pile.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
20 May 2026
Verb
-
Layering security means stacking controls so no single failure leads to a breach.—
Andy White,
Forbes.com,
15 May 2026
-
During a recent experience, the eight mini games ranged from trivia to stacking foam blocks and from Nerf dart shooting to spinning a giant wheel for points.—
Patrick Connolly,
The Orlando Sentinel,
14 May 2026
Verb
-
Residents in a northwest Atlanta neighborhood are raising concerns over Waymo vehicles crowding their streets.—
Angeline Jane Bernabe,
ABC News,
15 May 2026
-
Perhaps it’s meant to suggest the weight of history or the state apparatuses crowding characters into the bottom of the frame, or space that’s occupied by unseen spirits (Goethe himself?—
Leslie Felperin,
HollywoodReporter,
14 May 2026
Verb
-
Squeri’s next sojourn as CEO after visiting Buffett in Omaha was huddling with Delta’s Bastian in Atlanta.—
Shawn Tully,
Fortune,
6 May 2026
-
No officials huddling up and putting on headphones.—
Sean McIndoe,
New York Times,
24 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Piling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/piling. Accessed 21 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
