TENDING Synonyms: 121 Similar and Opposite Words

tending 1 of 3

adjective

as in prone

having a tendency to be or act in a certain way people tending toward daily exercise will significantly reduce their risk of cardiac arrest

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

tending

2 of 3

verb (1)

present participle of tend

as in leaning

to show a liking or proneness (for something) her wardrobe tends toward dark colors and heavy fabrics

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tending

3 of 3

verb (2)

present participle of tend

as in supervising

to take charge of especially on behalf of another tend the store while I run an errand

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as in growing

to look after or assist the growth of by labor and care lately I haven't been doing a good job of tending my garden

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as in cultivating

to work by plowing, sowing, and raising crops on plots that during the war were tended by city dwellers as vegetable gardens

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as in managing

to look after and make decisions about the dying patriarch wondered who would tend the family business after he was gone

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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 tending

Verb

Recent research confirms that biological changes linked to Alzheimer’s can begin as early as your late 50s (with more rare early onset cases tending to start in your 40s). — Maggie Ryan, Flow Space, 14 Oct. 2026 Season 11 of the show documented the new mom tending to infant Kayden in Croatia as the boy’s father, Nathan Gallager, worked 18-hour days on a nearby superyacht, the Akira One. — Tom Tapp, Deadline, 11 Oct. 2026 Lead times may be shortening across the market, with smaller rentals often booking only a few weeks ahead and larger homes tending to attract reservations somewhat earlier. — Kaitlyn Gomez, Miami Herald, 7 Oct. 2026 For four months, the Napa grower spent four to five hours a day tending four giant pumpkin plants, watching their vines, nurturing their fruit and waiting to see just how big one of them might get. — Nicole Buss, Sacbee.com, 4 Oct. 2026 If your heart needs soothing, go visit a grave in need of tending. — Steph Koyfman, Condé Nast Traveler, 28 Sep. 2026 Aquilina also explained that Luminate data pointed to binge releases tending to see big spikes in viewership but steep drops, while weekly releases maintain consistent engagement. — Andrew Wallenstein, Variety, 25 Sep. 2026 Millennial mothers and fathers in the United States spend more time tending to their offspring than Gen X-ers did. — Margaret Talbot, New Yorker, 21 Sep. 2026 Older people may experience a mental boost by tending to their grandchildren, with one study showing higher scores on memory and verbal fluency tests in grandparents who provided care. — Joe Hernandez, NPR, 20 Sep. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for tending

Adjective

The intersection of Route 229 and Pine Street/Mountain Road has been flagged as the city’s single most crash-prone crossing.

— Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 18 Oct. 2026
He’s steeped in these platforms, professionally invested, and not prone to conspiratorial concerns about insider trading or game fixing.

— Hannah Keyser, CNN Money, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of prone

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

That said, Universal’s campaign seemed less interested in cultivating those audiences than in reaching people who would have a strong reaction to a two-minute trailer.

— Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 12 Oct. 2026
Today, those cultivating followers in addition to a wardrobe have eked out more elbow space.

— Joan Kennedy, Vogue, 12 Oct. 2026

Definition of cultivating

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

Adjective

Screens make staying in easy Puls said that adults are more inclined to stay home and stream movies and TV shows instead of hosting friends and family or going out.

— Deirdre Bardolf, FOXNews.com, 17 Oct. 2026
Republicans were slightly more inclined to approve, with 34 percent arguing it should be livestreamed, but even there, an overwhelming 64 percent disagreed.

— Victor Tangermann, Futurism, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of inclined

Verb

This album was his 3-1 comeback after watching his career nearly flatline.

— Carl Lamarre, Billboard, 14 Oct. 2026
Sitting at 2-3 and watching their defense get pushed around on a weekly basis, the entire unit gathered behind closed doors on Monday morning to air out their issues.

— Alejandro Avila OutKick, FOXNews.com, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of watching

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tenders

tending

tending (to)

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

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Synonyms of tending

adjective

verb (1)

verb (2)

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