pencil in

verb

penciled in or pencilled in; penciling in or pencilling in; pencils in
Synonyms of pencil innext
: to put (someone or something that may be changed later) on a schedule, list, etc.
Would you like me to pencil you in for Thursday morning at 11?
—sometimes used figuratively
He was penciled in as the director's replacement.

Examples of pencil in in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Las Vegas was first explored before Madison Square Garden became the frontrunner, with November 20 as the date pencilled in. — Chris McKenna, New York Times, 4 Sep. 2026 However, the company said to anticipate slightly lower revenue than analysts had penciled in for the current quarter. — Alex Harring, CNBC, 3 Sep. 2026 Everything seemed perfect, the moving date was pencilled in for October, and then things went sideways. — Nicola Twilley, New Yorker, 27 Aug. 2026 Until the mid-1800s, pencils in America had no eraser, and the eraserless pencil is still standard in the rest of the world. — ABC News, 24 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for pencil in

Browse Nearby Words

pencil flower
pencil in
penciling
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Pencil in.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pencil%20in. Accessed 5 Sep. 2026.

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