as in awakening
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1
as in awaking
to cause to stop sleeping
my banging around in the kitchen woke my wife
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in wakening
to cease to be asleep
I woke with a start when the door slammed
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in alerting
to give notice to beforehand especially of danger or risk
a public service announcement designed to wake people to the dangers of aggressive driving
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of waking
Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 17 Apr. 2020
Since becoming director of Dallas Animal Services in October 2017, Ed Jamison has spent every waking moment trying to get potential adopters and fosters into the shelter.
—Sharon Grigsby, Dallas News, 6 Apr. 2020
Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 15 Jan. 2026
The text lays bare the grim conditions under which Black people lived, detailing the hatred and bigotry they were confronted with every single waking second.
—Raisa Habersham, Miami Herald, 15 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for waking
Adjective
When nightmare scenarios move to the waking world, stark fictions and knotty personal histories offer guidance less in the factual specifics than in their emotional terrain.
—Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 17 Apr. 2020
Since becoming director of Dallas Animal Services in October 2017, Ed Jamison has spent every waking moment trying to get potential adopters and fosters into the shelter.
—Sharon Grigsby, Dallas News, 6 Apr. 2020
Verb
As exhaustion mounts, the boundary between waking life and possession collapses, forcing the women to confront both a supernatural threat and a system that thrives on sleeplessness.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 15 Jan. 2026
The text lays bare the grim conditions under which Black people lived, detailing the hatred and bigotry they were confronted with every single waking second.
—Raisa Habersham, Miami Herald, 15 Jan. 2026
See All Example Sentences for waking
Recent Examples of Synonyms for waking
Verb
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In Hocus Pocus, Dani, her older brother Max (Omri Katz) and his crush Allison (Vinessa Shaw) have to save the children of Salem, Massachusetts after accidentally awaking the witch Sanderson sisters from their 300-year slumber.—
Glenn Garner,
Deadline,
25 Oct. 2025
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Tirso Ornelas’ seventh-inning grand slam triggered a late-game awaking as Triple-A El Paso beat host Sugar Land 13-2 on Wednesday.—
Jeff Sanders,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
18 Sep. 2025
Verb
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As for that sense-awakening fusion of eucalyptus, musk, and sandalwood?—
Stacia Datskovska,
Footwear News,
10 Feb. 2026
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But our power is about awakening something beyond fear and cynicism in the human nervous system.—
Hanif Abdurraqib,
New Yorker,
6 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Even the stadium announcer caught wind, alerting the fans in Cortina just before Watkins popped the question.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
13 Feb. 2026
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An administration official also told NewsNation’s Hannah Brandt that FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford decided to close the airspace without alerting White House, Pentagon or Homeland Security officials.—
Max Rego,
The Hill,
12 Feb. 2026
Verb
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In the days after October 7, Tel Aviv jazz musician Y (Ariel Bronz) and his dancer wife Yasmine (Efrat Dor) decide to say yes to everything — including a commission to write a rousing new national anthem.—
Ryan Lattanzio,
IndieWire,
10 Feb. 2026
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As even the most casual football fan knows, the Budweiser Clydesdales have starred in many Super Bowl classics, from a somber 9/11 tribute to a rousing horse football game.—
Debby Wolfinsohn,
Entertainment Weekly,
8 Feb. 2026
Verb
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New state regulations approved this month are set to significantly reshape California's cardroom industry, with operators warning the changes would effectively outlaw blackjack-style games from within those facilities.—
Charlie Lapastora,
CBS News,
10 Feb. 2026
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El Dorado County Sheriff’s officials are warning residents after a man impersonating a deputy pulled over and assaulted a driver last week on a county road before the driver used bear spray to get away.—
Darrell Smith,
Sacbee.com,
10 Feb. 2026
Adjective
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Adding oils or a warm soak can increase sensitivity and make the experience both soothing and arousing.—
Essence,
Essence,
11 Sep. 2025
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Squeezing lube out of a bottle until the cold goop squirts out isn't the most arousing act.—
Brenda Stolyar,
WIRED,
4 Feb. 2023
Adjective
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Isaacson sometimes recommends his patients even try a cognitively stimulating activity while exercising, such as taking a meeting while walking or doing cognitive training on a stationary bike.—
Akshay Syal,
NBC news,
9 Feb. 2026
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Gates has assembled a stimulating, illuminating, maddening, saddening, but often inspiring, story of their relations with the world and one another.—
Robert Lloyd,
Twin Cities,
7 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Waking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/waking. Accessed 14 Feb. 2026.
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