yawning

American  

[yaw-ning] / ˈyɔ nɪŋ /

adjective

1. being or standing wide open; gaping.

   the yawning mouth of a cave.

2. indicating by yawns one's weariness or indifference.

   The lecturer was oblivious to his yawning audience.

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Other Word Forms

• yawningly adverb

Etymology

Origin of yawning

before 900; Middle English; Old English geniendum. See yawn, -ing ²

Explanation

Yawning is what happens when you reflexively open your mouth wide, inhale, and exhale again. Most yawning is caused by sleepiness or extreme boredom. Use the word yawning for actual yawning — or to mean "wide open." A yawning chasm in the ground is a huge, wide gap, and a yawning hole in a movie's plot is the obvious space where some details are missing, making the resulting story seem unlikely and unbelievable. A yawning child, on the other hand, is probably just ready for her nap.

Example Sentences

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul is planning to propose a tax on New York City’s second homes worth $5 million or more in an effort to fill the city’s yawning budget deficit.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 15, 2026

Following more than 20 hours of talks in the Pakistani capital Islamabad, US Vice President JD Vance admitted the yawning differences between the US and Iran proved to be insurmountable for the moment.

From Barron's • Apr. 12, 2026

And while the money did close some of the early, yawning deficit Cornyn was facing against Paxton in preliminary polling, it hardly has put his opponents away.

From Slate • Mar. 2, 2026

Nothing much happens, until the segment’s finale introduces a twist that suggests the yawning chasm between what we think we know about our parents and what the truth of their lives is.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 24, 2025

The big Trailways bus at the Welch station accepted my panels and boxes of hardware in its yawning luggage bays.

From "October Sky" by Homer Hickam

Related Words

• broad
• buried
• deep-seated
• far
• profound
• rooted
• wide