as in melancholy
given to or marked by long, quiet thinking
he was clearly in a musing mood, and did not feel like talking just then
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in meditation
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of musing
Elaina Patton, NBC News, 17 Jan. 2025
But President-elect Donald Trump’s musings about America taking over have shaken this island from its Arctic anonymity.
—Daniel Wine, CNN, 13 Jan. 2025
Late-night comedians have had a field day with Donald Trump’s musings about his administration possibly seizing Greenland and the Panama Canal.
—Thomas Friedman, The Mercury News, 15 Jan. 2025
She was known for her outspoken nature and philosophical musings.
—Camille Bromley Gabra Zackman Krish Seenivasan David Mason, New York Times, 6 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for musing 
Noun
Whereas the ailing thespian in Bergman’s black-and-white thriller grows increasingly hostile in response to her caretaker’s constant musings, the bond between Almodóvar’s protagonists tightens as Ingrid listens to Martha contemplate life and death.
—Elaina Patton, NBC News, 17 Jan. 2025
But President-elect Donald Trump’s musings about America taking over have shaken this island from its Arctic anonymity.
—Daniel Wine, CNN, 13 Jan. 2025
Late-night comedians have had a field day with Donald Trump’s musings about his administration possibly seizing Greenland and the Panama Canal.
—Thomas Friedman, The Mercury News, 15 Jan. 2025
She was known for her outspoken nature and philosophical musings.
—Camille Bromley Gabra Zackman Krish Seenivasan David Mason, New York Times, 6 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for musing
Recent Examples of Synonyms for musing
Adjective
-
Perhaps there’s something melancholy but appealing about the idea of a passionate romance that speeds up time, leaving one person with only difficult but beautiful memories, instead of the banalities of daily life that accompany a long partnership.—
Alissa Wilkinson,
New York Times,
16 Jan. 2025
-
The melancholy tune surges from No. 62 to No. 45, nearly entering the top 40 for the very first time.—
Hugh McIntyre,
Forbes,
31 Dec. 2024
Noun
-
For me, starting my mornings with a good workout, meditation and time to journal my thoughts and think clearly primes me for the rest of the day.—
Expert Panel®,
Forbes,
22 Jan. 2025
-
Joyful or life-affirming activities (say, hobbies like painting or baking) or things that lift your spirits (such as exercise or meditation) might seem frivolous in the face of pressing caregiver responsibilities.—
Korin Miller,
SELF,
21 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
School Board members are now pondering the idea of asking voters for another bond in the future.—
Scott Travis,
Sun Sentinel,
29 Dec. 2024
-
There may be some benefit from these policies, but business leaders pondering their 2025 plans will want to focus on their own labor needs.—
Bill Conerly,
Forbes,
23 Dec. 2024
Adjective
-
Employers consistently emphasize the value of hiring individuals with a broad knowledge base who can collaborate to solve problems, engage in thoughtful debate, communicate clearly, and think critically—skills that liberal-arts programs rigorously cultivate.—
Sarah Hernholm,
Forbes,
18 Jan. 2025
-
And having more thoughtful conversations doesn’t preclude the need sometimes to confront those who are needlessly cruel or organizations that benefit from such exploitation.—
Bilge Ebiri,
Vulture,
18 Jan. 2025
Noun
-
The meanings of these images—which speak variously of environmental collapse, policy failure, ineluctable helplessness—do not invite their use as objects of contemplation.—
Teju Cole,
The New Yorker,
10 Jan. 2025
-
However, this system is not meant to be a progress report, a checklist or a contemplation of failures, but a source of inspiration.—
Roxsy Lin,
Los Angeles Times,
3 Jan. 2025
Verb
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For instance, a depressed person may feel better in terms of their energy and sleep, but still have negative, ruminating thoughts.—
Charles Trepany,
USA TODAY,
16 Dec. 2024
-
People filled comment sections for videos and posts about the shooting with unsympathetic replies, pointing out UnitedHealthcare’s reputation for denying claims, and ruminating on how much suffering Thompson was responsible for at the helm of the company.—
Ali Breland,
The Atlantic,
11 Dec. 2024
Adjective
-
The systems failed to work altogether with the reflective stripes added to either the black or white alternatives.—
Jim Gorzelany,
Forbes,
20 Jan. 2025
-
What could have been a drab ten-story block surrounded by pavement instead became a low, deep, black-glass blob—reflective in the day, glowing at night—that filled the whole lot, following the curves of medieval streets.—
Ian Parker,
The New Yorker,
20 Jan. 2025
Noun
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But my post-summit reverie was broken by a nightmare scenario: a trail-crew looking up from their work to judge me.—
Grayson Haver Currin,
Outside Online,
2 Jan. 2025
-
In Sewing Machine, 2000, the mechanism’s operator—this time male—seems not to be sewing at all, but conducting some kind of shamanistic ritual that sends the other figures populating the painting’s hallucinatory space into their own incommensurable realms of reverie.—
Barry Schwabsky,
Artforum,
1 Jan. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Musing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/musing. Accessed 31 Jan. 2025.
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