collecting

verb

present participle of collect
1
as in containing
to gain emotional or mental control of applicants should collect their thoughts while waiting to be interviewed

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2
as in accumulating
to gradually form into a layer, pile, or mass dust has been collecting under my bed for years

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in compiling
to bring together from several sources into a single volume or list collected the author's early short stories, which were originally published in several obscure sci-fi magazines

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4
as in assembling
to bring together in one body or place she collects antique silverware

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
5
as in gathering
to come together into one body or place a crowd collected at the beach as the sun slowly set over the horizon

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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 collecting Americans in general did not want the government collecting unified, know-all records of every citizen. — Los Angeles Times, 20 Oct. 2026 Leaders should also consider how factoring may affect customer relationships, particularly when the factor takes an active role in collecting receivables. — Andrew Coon, Forbes.com, 20 Oct. 2026 Trust fund depletion would not mean Social Security stops collecting payroll taxes or paying benefits. — Fernanda Tronco, Fortune, 20 Oct. 2026 Investigators were seen collecting shell casings and bullet fragments from the scene, and numerous evidence markers were set down. — Darius Johnson, CBS News, 20 Oct. 2026 Then, in 1899, Fayet inherited the family estate and began collecting in earnest, acquiring his first Renoirs and Gauguins. — Julie Coe, Architectural Digest, 20 Oct. 2026 Not bad for a chunk of brass that's been collecting dust for 11 years, but here's the catch. — Jon Root Outkick, FOXNews.com, 19 Oct. 2026 But no matter how monumental a piece is, for me, collecting has never been about keeping things locked up. — Riley Jones, Footwear News, 19 Oct. 2026 Even if Washington continues to lead the world in software, therefore, China may be able to rapidly gain ground on or even surpass the United States by deploying AI across the physical economy and collecting greater amounts of real-world data. — Scott Singer, Foreign Affairs, 12 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for collecting
  1. containing
  2. accumulating
  3. compiling
  4. assembling
  5. gathering
  6. composing
  7. amassing
  8. converging
Verb
  • Instead of exchanging the entire print head, the K3 swaps a smaller assembly containing the nozzle, hotend and filament path.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 17 Oct. 2026
  • An anonymous security engineer on OpenAI’s agent security team argued in a recent post that containing models had become too complex.
    — Beatrice Nolan, Fortune, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of containing
Verb
  • The combination of accumulating snow and potentially slick roads could affect travel in the mountains from Wednesday afternoon through Thursday morning.
    — Callie Zanandrie, CBS News, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Scientists are investigating whether these accumulating pressures on the developing gut microbiome may contribute to rising neurodevelopmental differences, like autism with high support needs.
    — Holly Baines, STAT, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of accumulating
Verb
  • The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department is compiling data now, Battle said.
    — Nick Sullivan, Charlotte Observer, 5 Oct. 2026
  • Flores was the head coach of the Dolphins from 2019 to 2021, compiling a 24-25 record.
    — Jon Krawczynski, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of compiling
Verb
  • Ukraine has earned worldwide recognition for its cutting-edge drone industry, designing and assembling systems that have changed modern warfare.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Those aren't great odds, but as Dodgers fans kept reminding everyone while assembling their superteam, baseball is inherently random.
    — Bobby Burack OutKick, FOXNews.com, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of assembling
Verb
  • Russia's Federal Security Service said the man, who works for the Hokkaido Shimbun newspaper, was suspected of gathering information about Russia's defense capability on behalf of a Japanese intelligence agency.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 14 Oct. 2026
  • While Boeing callously deflects blame for their negligence, a family of one victim finds strength in gathering collective mourning.
    — Matthew Carey, Deadline, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of gathering
Verb
  • Gash love composing songs whose intersecting lines set the entire mood of the song—jarring, dreamy, or nostalgic—in the style of art-house sampling.
    — Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 13 Oct. 2026
  • Lyall pulled out his phone and began composing a message for Claude, the AI app from Anthropic.
    — Jacob Feldman, Sportico.com, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of composing
Verb
  • The Razorbacks' run game lifted them throughout, amassing 187 yards.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 17 Oct. 2026
  • In 2019, two years before Guojun Xuan and Silvia Zhang began amassing a family of more than 20 surrogate children, Zhang was accused of misdemeanor child abuse after leaving her then-8-year-old daughter in a hot car for hours.
    — James Queally, Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of amassing
Verb
  • Why Screening Is So Important Three forces are converging to push lobular breast cancer into sharper public focus.
    — Samantha Agate, Kansas City Star, 14 Oct. 2026
  • That growing institutional interest is converging with demand from retail investors, who have long sought the ability to trade around the clock, according to Friedman.
    — Jenny Lee, CNBC, 8 Oct. 2026
Definition of converging

Browse Nearby Words

collectibles
collecting
collection
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Cite this Entry

“Collecting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/collecting. Accessed 21 Oct. 2026.

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