trending

verb

present participle of trend
1
as in leaning
to show a liking or proneness (for something) during the winter our school system trends toward canceling school at the drop of a hat—or at least a snowflake

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in curving
to turn away from a straight line or course the river trends east, then west again, forming an oxbow

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 trending Other companies soon took note of the trending Tempur-Pedic and then began to introduce their own foam mattresses. — Jaklin Romine oct. 15, Los Angeles Times, 15 Oct. 2026 Waters are becoming cloudier overall, while harmful algal blooms — measured through chlorophyll a levels — are trending in the wrong direction, the report found. — Adam Thompson, CBS News, 14 Oct. 2026 The stock is trending down about 1% in late-morning trade today at just under $70, a big comedown from a 52-week high of $125. — Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 14 Oct. 2026 Many of the trending combos right now complement each other and make the lips look more naturally sculpted. — Catharine Malzahn, Allure, 12 Oct. 2026 Things don’t seem to be trending in the right direction, and 0-4 seems slightly past the point of return. — Sam Jane, Denver Post, 9 Oct. 2026 Stone opted for an airy style that was trending among celebrities during Paris Fashion Week, wearing a customized version of the fifth look from the collection. — Julia Teti, Footwear News, 8 Oct. 2026 Amazon says Prime Big Deal Days will feature deals across more than 35 categories, spanning trending products and premium brands to fall must-haves, tech, Halloween finds, home and hosting essentials and more. — ABC News, 7 Oct. 2026 So what's happened thus far in 2026 that can give us some clues as to who's trending up and who's trending down? — Ian Miller Outkick, FOXNews.com, 7 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for trending
  1. leaning
  2. curving
  3. tending
Verb
  • Scott Olson | Getty Images McDonald's is hoping to rule the roost by leaning into chicken and drinks.
    — Alex Harring, CNBC, 13 Oct. 2026
  • Lately, Chavarria says he’s been leaning toward bolder, harder looks, a change from the past focus on joy and softness.
    — Julyssa Lopez, Rolling Stone, 12 Oct. 2026
Definition of leaning
Verb
  • The tangle of stubby points stood out like overgrown thumbs, and the down-curving prongs on either side of his head were at least a foot long.
    — Al Dawson, Outdoor Life, 15 Oct. 2026
  • Elsewhere, the opposition are man-to-man across the pitch, with full-backs ready to jump forward and McBurnie curving his run to block out the short pass to Tyrone Mings.
    — Thom Harris, New York Times, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of curving
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
Definition of tending

Browse Nearby Words

trendiness
trending
trends
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Trending.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/trending. 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

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of compunction

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