as in rational
having the ability to reason
judged by the courts not to be a reasoning being who could be held accountable for his crimes
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in logic
the thought processes that have been established as leading to valid solutions to problems
your reasoning here is faulty, for although all wives are spouses, not all spouses are wives
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in understanding
to form an opinion or reach a conclusion through reasoning and information
she reasoned that since all of the cakes were on sale for the same price, she might as well pick the biggest one
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in arguing
to state (something) as a reason in support of or against something under consideration
he tried to reason that no one in their right mind would buy his brother's old video games, but they were put on the online auction anyway
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of reasoning
James O. Cunningham, The Orlando Sentinel, 2 Apr. 2026
System two is the slow reasoning that involves imagination and world models.
—IEEE Spectrum, 2 Apr. 2026
Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 5 Mar. 2026
In reasoning training, study participants worked on the ability to solve problems that follow a serial pattern, like identifying the pattern in a letter or number series.
—Akshay Syal, NBC news, 9 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for reasoning
Noun
Ironically, both Nietzsche and Keller argued that the moral values of secularism do not originate in scientific reasoning but rather in Christianity.
—James O. Cunningham, The Orlando Sentinel, 2 Apr. 2026
System two is the slow reasoning that involves imagination and world models.
—IEEE Spectrum, 2 Apr. 2026
Verb
Safety and reasoning transparency OpenAI also introduced a new safety evaluation focused on chain-of-thought reasoning, the step-by-step explanations models generate while solving problems.
—Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 5 Mar. 2026
In reasoning training, study participants worked on the ability to solve problems that follow a serial pattern, like identifying the pattern in a letter or number series.
—Akshay Syal, NBC news, 9 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for reasoning
Recent Examples of Synonyms for reasoning
Adjective
-
The lawsuit claims that Missouri lawmakers used no rational basis to categorize which counties qualified for a 5% cap, a freeze or neither.—
Jenna Ebbers,
Kansas City Star,
4 Apr. 2026
-
When medicated, Lofton is thoughtful and rational, just like in years past, his mother said.—
Matthew Adams,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
3 Apr. 2026
Noun
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On social media, make jokes that don’t follow logic or build toward a punch line, but rather rely on jump cuts and endless captions.—
Emily Menez,
New Yorker,
31 Mar. 2026
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As a boy, Caldwell never doubted his father’s logic.—
Namir Khaliq,
Big Think,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Such initiatives are crucial for understanding how our home star emits radiation, a life-and-death concern for human spaceflight missions — particularly for trips to the moon, as NASA is pursuing with the Artemis program, or Mars.—
Jackie Wattles,
CNN Money,
5 Apr. 2026
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And if moderation within that system is limited, as some argue, then the challenge for policymakers is not simply negotiation, but understanding the ideology that drives it.—
Efrat Lachter,
FOXNews.com,
5 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Greenwood Village Police Department investigators said the men had been arguing while driving with two other people in the SUV when Hernandez pulled over and everyone but Hernandez got out of the vehicle to cool down.—
Katie Langford,
Denver Post,
3 Apr. 2026
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The city sued, arguing the Angels were violating the lease, but a jury sided with the baseball team.—
Victoria Le,
Oc Register,
3 Apr. 2026
Adjective
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If dinosaurs were strong and intelligent — if humans didn’t really deserve to inherit the Earth from them — then their death in a cosmic freak accident represents unimaginable loss.—
Scottie Andrew,
CNN Money,
5 Apr. 2026
-
For years, now, we have been forced to tap, swipe, and scan in an outdated infrastructure, built for a pre-intelligent era.—
Alex Israel,
Fortune,
4 Apr. 2026
Noun
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New romance is a reason to celebrate!—
USA TODAY,
USA Today,
1 Apr. 2026
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The future of legal sports betting States that have not yet legalized sports betting may still see similar trends in financial insecurity for reasons beyond spillover effects.—
Sasha Rogelberg,
Fortune,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The very legitimacy of deriving general principles from the particulars of experience can never be established from experience without already having the principle in hand.—
Christopher Beha,
New Yorker,
14 Feb. 2026
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Large language models represent the first technology capable of analyzing, contextualizing and deriving insights from this avalanche of information.—
Sahar Hashmi,
Forbes.com,
25 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The Wizards are talking about contending next season, once their centerpiece arrives through the draft.—
Louisa Thomas,
New Yorker,
5 Apr. 2026
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After the second call was overturned, Twins manager Derek Shelton exploded from the dugout, contending Helsley didn’t challenge in time.—
Peter Sblendorio,
New York Daily News,
4 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Reasoning.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/reasoning. Accessed 7 Apr. 2026.
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