acknowledging

verb

present participle of acknowledge
as in admitting
to accept the truth or existence of (something) usually reluctantly finally had to acknowledge that she'd outgrown her favorite jacket

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of acknowledging But acknowledging a property’s cheesy elements isn’t the same as generating consistent laughs from the situation. — Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026 Also, historically, the Pentagon's procurement decisions have reduced spending on ammunition and missiles to free up money for fighter jets, tanks and warships, even while acknowledging that those weapons are essential to war fighting. — James Laporta, CBS News, 15 Oct. 2026 His remarks came after Tan highlighted Singapore's reputation as a safe haven, which has helped attract capital and support the local currency, while acknowledging that the city-state remains a relatively expensive place to do business. — Lee Ying Shan, CNBC, 13 Oct. 2026 Tellingly, the network seemed to know the difference in its official response, acknowledging that the original piece contained errors. — Max Tani, semafor.com, 12 Oct. 2026 The actor said the film was deliberately kept short, acknowledging that today's audiences may not have the patience to sit through a lengthy saga. — Stephanie Nolasco, FOXNews.com, 9 Oct. 2026 Recognizing, acknowledging and working to rectify, wherever possible, the moral blindspots, inequities and shortfalls of the past is not hatred for our nation, as some suggest. — James Coffin, The Orlando Sentinel, 8 Oct. 2026 Neither party got into the specifics of their agreement, acknowledging only that the multi-year deal extends beyond the Olympics. — Edward Lee, Baltimore Sun, 8 Oct. 2026 At Wednesday’s hearing, Paul described Niembro as the most culpable of the four defendants and Ramirez as second, while acknowledging that Ramirez’s cooperation justified a significantly shorter sentence. — Antonio María Delgado, Miami Herald, 7 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for acknowledging
  1. admitting
  2. confessing
  3. conceding
Verb
  • The Biden administration built it back and set a goal of admitting 125,000 refugees during the final year of his term.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 15 Oct. 2026
  • The Election Commission may yet blunt the controversy by admitting voters whose appeals are pending or by making procedural concessions that reduce the immediate grievances.
    — Pratap Bhanu Mehta, Foreign Affairs, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of admitting
Verb
  • On July 23, 1973, tragedy rippled through the Mexican American community when 12-year-old Santos Rodriguez was shot and killed by a Dallas police officer who tried to coerce him into confessing to a burglary by playing Russian roulette.
    — Alexis Guerrero, CBS News, 8 Oct. 2026
  • Throw in some divine intervention with the first Chicago pope confessing his allegiance to the South Siders, and the Cinderella story has captured the nation’s imagination.
    — Chicago Tribune, Chicago Tribune, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of confessing
Verb
  • The Roos entered the weekend having scored 24 goals this year, while conceding just 10 in 11 games.
    — Daniel Sperry, Kansas City Star, 11 Oct. 2026
  • The administration’s top economic officials are now conceding that favorable aggregate indicators are no easy answer to public anxiety.
    — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of conceding

Browse Nearby Words

acknowledges
acknowledging
acknowledgment
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Acknowledging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/acknowledging. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

Did 'orange' the fruit or the color come first?
See More

Popular

See More

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
artwork of illustrated limes with the text limes and smile with an arrow connecting the two words
Quiz: Spot the Anagram! Scramble these words to find new words with the e...
See All