preening

Definition of preeningnext
present participle of preen

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for preening
Verb
  • Following a violent clash that Saturday, group members circulated videos of Lang being dragged into a mob and struck over the head, gloating over the images as evidence that their counterprotest had been effective.
    Christina Buttons, Washington Post, 3 Feb. 2026
  • No wonder Newsom gloating after the Texas court decision came down.
    Thomas Elias, Mercury News, 2 Dec. 2025
Verb
  • My introduction to Peters came late last year, when Instagram’s algorithm served me a video of him wearing a baseball cap, primping and pouting for the camera.
    Thomas Chatterton Williams, The Atlantic, 19 Jan. 2026
Verb
  • Jenner, like her sister Kim Kardashian, has often turned to Margiela for her most major moments, with an affinity for the house’s sensual, body-exulting designs.
    Anna Cafolla, Vogue, 30 Jan. 2026
  • The whoop, the sound of exulting Moby-Dick nuts, goes raggedly around the galleries and hallways of the museum.
    James Parker, The Atlantic, 27 Jan. 2026
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Cite this Entry

“Preening.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/preening. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.

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