carrying on

verb

Definition of carrying onnext
present participle of carry on
1
as in acting out
to behave badly a toddler crying and carrying on in the store

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in persisting
to continue despite difficulties, opposition, or discouragement she bravely carried on despite the loss of her husband

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in operating
to look after and make decisions about carries on a business and still manages to run the household

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 carrying on There’s been a lot of talk about carrying on her work, especially during these times when people feel like some of it has been eroded. — Helen Carefoot, Flow Space, 7 Oct. 2026 In the tangled greenery of a Ugandan national park, mountain gorillas sit among the leaves, calmly carrying on as tourists trek into their forest home. — ABC News, 24 Sep. 2026 The acquisition also puts Lewis in the somewhat unusual position of carrying on the businesses of two veteran New York printmakers who helped shape his career. — Daniel Cassady, ARTnews.com, 17 Sep. 2026 The two sides are carrying on with development of multiple projects, with one of them said to be nearing a series order. — Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 4 Sep. 2026 The band is dedicated to carrying on the spirit of a live Rush concert. — Patrick Connolly, The Orlando Sentinel, 31 Aug. 2026 Heitz Cellar’s current winemaker Brittany Sherwood is carrying on the tradition of stunning selections by using only organic and biodynamic Napa Valley grapes. — Mike Desimone, Robb Report, 28 Aug. 2026 What began as a single title has since grown into more than 400 books and counting, with Mike Berenstain now carrying on the family legacy. — Madeleine Wright, CBS News, 25 Aug. 2026 Established in 2022 with the support of Prine’s family and Oh Boy Records, the award celebrates the legacy of the late songwriter as seen through a living talent carrying on his work. — Selena Fragassi, SPIN, 24 Aug. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for carrying on
  1. acting out
  2. persisting
  3. operating
  4. disobeying
  5. managing
  6. acting up
  7. supervising
  8. overseeing
Verb
  • And sometimes people do that with drugs, some people do that with acting out or getting in fights or whatever the ways that people do it.
    — Christina Dugan Ramirez, FOXNews.com, 14 Oct. 2026
  • If Graham fails in her bid, she can be forgiven for acting out of loyalty and love for her brother.
    — Kathleen Parker, Washington Post, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of acting out
Verb
  • With concerns about literacy levels persisting, Ryder's approach to encouraging active learning and critical thinking may resonate with parents navigating a rapidly changing educational environment.
    — Corynn Winston, CNBC, 14 Oct. 2026
  • With security concerns persisting ahead of the Qatar Grand Prix in November and the season finale in Abu Dhabi in December, F1 has considered a fallback option in Europe, with Italy’s Imola circuit as the favorite.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of persisting
Verb
  • The test took place aboard the USS Ronald Reagan, a Nimitz-class aircraft carrier operating in the Pacific Ocean.
    — Neetika Walter, Interesting Engineering, 20 Oct. 2026
  • The model allows brands to reach customers across cities and markets without bearing the full cost of operating their own stores.
    — Yiling Pan, Vogue, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of operating
Verb
  • Cops had issued summonses to the driver twice before, once in 2024 for failing to yield to a pedestrian and in 2018 for disobeying a traffic device, officials said.
    — Rocco Parascandola, New York Daily News, 11 Sep. 2026
  • The violations are disobeying orders and conduct unbecoming an officer.
    — Charlie D'Agata, CBS News, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of disobeying
Verb
  • Positioning the commercial arm of the 100-year-old BBC for a streaming future while managing the traditional linear channels that still do great business in many international territories.
    — Stewart Clarke, Deadline, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Years later, there’s still work to be done managing a film’s intellectual property rights and corporate vehicles.
    — Kim Jackson, IndieWire, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of managing
Verb
  • But sleep was hard to come by, with her daughter’s asthma acting up and the anxiety of the hearing the following day.
    — Syra Ortiz Blanes, Miami Herald, 17 Sep. 2026
  • Baye continued acting up until 2023.
    — Kimberlee Speakman, PEOPLE, 18 Apr. 2026
Definition of acting up
Verb
  • For ShadowMachine, Alex Bulkley and Corey Campodonico serve as executive producers, and Musa Brooker serves as supervising director.
    — Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 16 Oct. 2026
  • The surge in profits has been driven by robust trading in stocks, bonds and currencies, fees from supervising and advising clients’ investments, underwriting initial public offerings and a pickup in mergers and acquisitions.
    — John Towfighi, CNN Money, 6 Oct. 2026
Definition of supervising
Verb
  • Judge Heather Beato, appointed by DeSantis to the 10th Judicial Circuit in 2020, is overseeing the case, a court docket shows.
    — Justin Garcia, Miami Herald, 19 Oct. 2026
  • Instead, the board should function as a concert of great powers, both democratic and autocratic, tasked with managing crises and overseeing and building consensus on matters of global governance.
    — Charles Kupchan, Foreign Affairs, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of overseeing

Browse Nearby Words

carrying off
carrying on
carrying out
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Carrying on.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/carrying%20on. Accessed 21 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

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of jilt

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

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

'Can' vs. 'May'

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

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

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

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

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

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

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
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