as in lurching
to move forward while swaying from side to side
the duck waddled back into the water we watched the penguins waddle over the ice together
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Recent Examples of waddling
Video footage from Levi’s Stadium shows people dressed as trees waddling onto the field and taking position before Bad Bunny's performance kicks off.
—
Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 9 Feb. 2026
Like, waddling-around, can't-see-your-feet, fifteen-chins fat.
—Gretchen Hansen, Entertainment Weekly, 27 Nov. 2025
In an October 23 Instagram video posted by user @jenjinete, a tiny Shih Tzu puppy can be seen waddling onto the porch, tail wagging rapidly, as the mailman approaches to make the day's delivery.
—Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 Nov. 2025
More serious collectors may prefer waddling to the local Cars & Coffee with an earlier VW, recalling a kinder, gentler, and far slower-paced time than our present age.
—Robert Ross, Robb Report, 12 Sep. 2025
But Seymour did not opt for the waddling bird in the hand.
—Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2025
Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 9 Feb. 2026
Like, waddling-around, can't-see-your-feet, fifteen-chins fat.
—Gretchen Hansen, Entertainment Weekly, 27 Nov. 2025
In an October 23 Instagram video posted by user @jenjinete, a tiny Shih Tzu puppy can be seen waddling onto the porch, tail wagging rapidly, as the mailman approaches to make the day's delivery.
—Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 5 Nov. 2025
More serious collectors may prefer waddling to the local Cars & Coffee with an earlier VW, recalling a kinder, gentler, and far slower-paced time than our present age.
—Robert Ross, Robb Report, 12 Sep. 2025
But Seymour did not opt for the waddling bird in the hand.
—Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 20 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for waddling
Verb
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Natanya complicates her old-school character sketch with cerebral shifts in perspective, affecting each of the voices that accompany a young woman’s drive for success and independence (demanding friends and parents, sexist expectations, her own willpower) in a lurching cascade of melodies.—
H.D. Angel,
Pitchfork,
13 Jan. 2026
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The midterm blue wave backlash is gathering, with the generic ballot lurching in the Democrats' favor and Trump’s popularity cratering.—
Matt Robison,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 Dec. 2025
Verb
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Cheng likes to build muni bond ladders, which means staggering the maturity dates of multiple bonds.—
Michelle Fox,
CNBC,
29 Oct. 2025
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To get through the season and the playoffs, staggering the minutes of Green and Horford is logical, even with Quintin Post picking up some center minutes.—
Jannelle Moore,
Mercury News,
21 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Bridgerton treats it as though every woman got multiples of their yearbook photo to hand around as headshots, and Benedict’s taking what would have been treasured personal heirlooms and just shuffling through them and tossing out anyone with the wrong hair color.—
Kathryn VanArendonk,
Vulture,
11 Feb. 2026
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Silvia showed them little affection or attention, shuffling quickly through the infants to feed, change, or hold them.—
Ava Kofman,
New Yorker,
9 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The company is in the process of translating its catalog, using AI to analyze the colors, layers and weaving patterns of previous design files.—
Angela Velasquez,
Sourcing Journal,
3 Feb. 2026
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And now, the Princess of Wales has made a trip to Melin Tregwynt, a historic woollen mill on the Pembrokeshire coast, known mostly for weaving traditional Welsh double-cloth designs.—
Daisy Jones,
Vogue,
3 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Now, even that tiny effort is tottering.—
Mark Z. Barabak,
Mercury News,
27 Jan. 2026
-
Now, even that tiny effort is tottering.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
21 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Austria and Canada coming from 2-1 down to beat Japan and Brazil, the latter coming from Liam Draxl seeing out a win over Gustavo Heide despite rolling his ankle in the seventh game of the deciding rubber.—
James Hansen,
New York Times,
9 Feb. 2026
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The oversized mock-neck sweater tucks chicly into the pencil-leg pants, primed for rolling at the hems and styling with chunky sneakers for long travel days.—
Olivia Young,
Travel + Leisure,
9 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Han will be posted up by the Milennium Falcon and/or Oga’s Cantina, Luke will be stomping his Chanel boots in the marketplace, and Darth Vader will be force-choking dads in Grumpy tees.—
Bethy Squires,
Vulture,
14 Jan. 2026
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Then there’s the people watching, from the tailgating to the communal divot stomping, full of dramatic sun dresses and hats with flourishes, seersucker suits and, yes, hats with flourishes.—
Eric Barton,
Sun Sentinel,
4 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Waddling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/waddling. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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