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Synonyms

meandering

American  
[mee-an-der-ing] / miˈæn dər ɪŋ /

adjective

  1. taking a winding or indirect course.

    The city of Budapest is divided into two parts by the meandering Danube River, spanned by several stunning bridges.

  2. wandering aimlessly; proceeding seemingly without direction; rambling.

    I'm unsure how I will condense a meandering narrative of my experiences into a thirty-second elevator pitch.

    Things proceed in a meandering way between them, until suddenly their relationship comes to a devastatingly emotional climax.


noun

  1. the act of wandering or proceeding aimlessly or by a winding or indirect course.

    I digress—but I blame it on the mental meandering of age.

    After a coffee and some meandering among the displays on the hotel mezzanine, I left the convention.

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of meandering

First recorded in 1610–20; meander ( def. ) + -ing 2 ( def. ) for the adjective senses; meander ( def. ) + -ing 1 ( def. ) for the noun sense

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Her one-year appointment as a visiting professor at a college in rural Greensbury, Vt., sets “Country People” in pleasantly meandering motion.

From The Wall Street Journal Jul. 28, 2026

The meandering routes and Mediterranean scenery of the Hills were a fresh source of amazement, giving rise to monumental depictions of Mulholland Drive and Nichols Canyon in a newly abstract style.

From Los Angeles Times Jun. 12, 2026

It also shows that evolution rarely follows a straight path, instead meandering through the ever-changing conditions on our planet.

From Science Daily May 21, 2026

Since then, the 79-year-old Republican has rarely missed an opportunity to discuss the project, frequently meandering in mid-speech on other topics to riff about the architectural details of the proposed facility.

From Barron's Mar. 31, 2026

He was a slow, tottering little thing, but Roz was rarely in a hurry, and together they loved meandering along the forest paths and around the banks of the pond.

From "The Wild Robot" by Peter Brown

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