1
as in flapping
to move from side to side or up and down with quick jerky motions
the cat's tail wagged back and forth in annoyance
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in gossiping
to relate sometimes questionable or secret information of a personal nature
tongues will wag as soon as word of the house's selling price gets around
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of wagging
Start your new year with love, cuddles and wagging tails!
—
Hema Sivanandam, Mercury News, 22 Dec. 2025
Christmas cheer came early, with wagging tails and floppy ears.
—Ronnie Li, USA Today, 19 Dec. 2025
Her body became stiff, alert, and her ever-wagging tail dropped low.
—Kelso Harper, Scientific American, 16 Dec. 2025
The Naked Gun stars Pamela Anderson and Liam Neeson sent tongues wagging over the summer with their flirty press tour while promoting the reboot of the slapstick police spoof comedies of the 1980s.
—Mekishana Pierre, Entertainment Weekly, 9 Dec. 2025
Tongues wagging across the country, everyone up in arms over the scandal.
—Lizz Schumer, PEOPLE, 8 Dec. 2025
The heartwarming clip shared in November under the username @laurenandcody shows the golden retriever, Charlie, jumping around, wagging his tail, and burying his head in the snow, after his owner took him out to enjoy the first snowfall of the year.
—Maria Azzurra Volpe, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Dec. 2025
There wasn’t any tailgating at Gillette Stadium Sunday, but there were plenty of wagging tails.
—Boston Herald Staff, Boston Herald, 19 Oct. 2025
Kiss’ original lineup included Frehley, singer-guitarist Paul Stanley, tongue-wagging bassist Gene Simmons and drummer Peter Criss.
—Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 18 Oct. 2025
Hema Sivanandam, Mercury News, 22 Dec. 2025
Christmas cheer came early, with wagging tails and floppy ears.
—Ronnie Li, USA Today, 19 Dec. 2025
Her body became stiff, alert, and her ever-wagging tail dropped low.
—Kelso Harper, Scientific American, 16 Dec. 2025
The Naked Gun stars Pamela Anderson and Liam Neeson sent tongues wagging over the summer with their flirty press tour while promoting the reboot of the slapstick police spoof comedies of the 1980s.
—Mekishana Pierre, Entertainment Weekly, 9 Dec. 2025
Tongues wagging across the country, everyone up in arms over the scandal.
—Lizz Schumer, PEOPLE, 8 Dec. 2025
The heartwarming clip shared in November under the username @laurenandcody shows the golden retriever, Charlie, jumping around, wagging his tail, and burying his head in the snow, after his owner took him out to enjoy the first snowfall of the year.
—Maria Azzurra Volpe, MSNBC Newsweek, 6 Dec. 2025
There wasn’t any tailgating at Gillette Stadium Sunday, but there were plenty of wagging tails.
—Boston Herald Staff, Boston Herald, 19 Oct. 2025
Kiss’ original lineup included Frehley, singer-guitarist Paul Stanley, tongue-wagging bassist Gene Simmons and drummer Peter Criss.
—Emma Burleigh, Fortune, 18 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wagging
Verb
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The team also discovered that rays using undulatory, wave-like swimming had better ground clearance than those with purely oscillatory, flapping motions.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
22 Jan. 2026
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For example, malware could send commands to rapidly open and close circuit breakers, a technique known as flapping.—
Saman Zonouz,
The Conversation,
22 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Months later, Hailey received a screenshot showing some of the pastors' adult daughters gossiping about the gun conflict.—
Taylor Seely,
AZCentral.com,
16 Jan. 2026
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And what exactly are people gossiping about — and suing one another over — in the Hamptons?—
Curbed Staff,
Curbed,
16 Dec. 2025
Verb
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Meeks and cinematographer Stefan Weinberger pay special attention to the region’s natural beauty, repeating a single shot of a car bobbing over a two-lane highway amid vibrant green hills.—
Katie Rife,
IndieWire,
25 Jan. 2026
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Still, the infant’s head can be seen bobbing up and down.—
Owen Clarke,
Outside,
20 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Alijah Arenas switched between his forehand shot and backhand, flicking the plastic ball over the net to his opponent, former NBA star Brandon Jennings.—
Haley Sawyer,
Oc Register,
20 Jan. 2026
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While the horses were flicking sand like fireworks.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
15 Jan. 2026
Verb
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As the industry now begins talking seriously about agentic AI, a more independent and decision-capable form of artificial intelligence, the question is no longer whether AI will reshape cars, but how far it should be allowed to go.—
Peter Lyon,
Forbes.com,
27 Jan. 2026
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Many survivors have been helped by talking things through with a licensed psychotherapist.—
Jeanne Phillips,
Mercury News,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Your adrenaline’s pumping [after] being out for a while.—
Daily News,
Daily News,
25 Jan. 2026
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Lavrenov is still pumping his fist and yelling to no one in particular after an inspired play because of what the sport means to him.—
Joe Davidson,
Sacbee.com,
23 Jan. 2026
Verb
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But the Missouri was always a wild river twitching its bed from side to side across its flood plain.—
Edward Lotterman,
Twin Cities,
1 Feb. 2026
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Harnessing the camp of countless Drag Race acting challenges that came before her, Jujubee films a close-up reaction to a group of rowdy passengers reprimanding her, escalating the moment until her face is full-on twitching before a physical confrontation.—
Jillian Sederholm,
Entertainment Weekly,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Virtually all the players, and often their caddies, make a point of coming over and shaking hands with the servicemen.—
Kirk Kenney,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
1 Feb. 2026
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The Fire Dogs and Law Hogs were united as one before kickoff, shaking hands and exchanging pleasantries.—
Joe Davidson,
Sacbee.com,
1 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Wagging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wagging. Accessed 4 Feb. 2026.
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