understudying

verb

present participle of understudy
as in substituting

Related Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for understudying
  1. substituting
  2. standing in
  3. subbing
  4. filling in
  5. taking over
  6. pinch-hitting
  7. stepping in
  8. covering
Verb
  • It can be made year-round, substituting in whatever fruit is available, ripe and delicious.
    — Deputy Managing Editor, Los Angeles Times, 1 Sep. 2026
  • His character Ned Schneebly was supposed to be substituting — until Dewey impersonated him and stepped in.
    — Kate Hogan, PEOPLE, 25 Aug. 2026
Definition of substituting
Verb
  • One afternoon, a man wearing a purple kurta was standing in line outside the shop.
    — Akhil Sharma, New Yorker, 3 Sep. 2026
  • That frees the company up to try to build new monopolies in AI, and the current DOJ doesn’t seem very interested in standing in the way of Big Tech.
    — Ryan Whitwam, ArsTechnica, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of standing in
Verb
  • Coincidentally, Barenaked Ladies are on the same double bill as Train this summer, with Robertson’s son, Lyle, subbing in as a utility player after bassist Jim Creeggan had to take a leave of absence to care for his family.
    — Devon Ivie, Vulture, 1 Sep. 2026
  • In 2020, Thompson was the second guest judge subbing for Cowell, following a stint by Kelly Clarkson.
    — Nellie Andreeva, Deadline, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of subbing
Verb
  • LaNeve, who is filling in as the Army’s top uniformed officer, recently ordered the battalion to refocus on its core mission of being an airborne infantry unit.
    — Konstantin Toropin, Los Angeles Times, 2 Sep. 2026
  • Jelly Roll shared his thoughts on Dolly Parton while filling in as guest host on Jimmy Kimmel Live!
    — Emily Zemler, Rolling Stone, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of filling in
Verb
  • Maximalist Garden Design Similar to interior design, the Rococo aesthetic, with its ornate and romantic details, is taking over garden design.
    — Michele Laufik, Martha Stewart, 3 Sep. 2026
  • Mladic first led a Serb insurgency in Croatia before taking over the Bosnian Serb army that was backed by Serbia and then-President Slobodan Milosevic, who also died in the custody of the Hague court in 2006 while on trial for genocide.
    — Jovana Gec, Los Angeles Times, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of taking over
Verb
  • Fischer’s booming bat could be used in a crucial pinch-hitting role.
    — Chuck Murr, Forbes.com, 20 Aug. 2026
  • More pinch-hitting, pinch-running and defensive replacements seem likely as the Phillies fight their way toward October.
    — Charlotte Varnes, New York Times, 18 Aug. 2026
Definition of pinch-hitting
Verb
  • Whenever either of them is absent, Estevao is very capable of stepping in.
    — Liam Twomey, New York Times, 26 Aug. 2026
  • Now, the Gates Foundation is stepping in to help fund scientific research through an historic $540 million gift to The Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME), an independent research organization at the University of Washington.
    — Sydney Lake, Fortune, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of stepping in
Verb
  • Pack a tube of petroleum jelly (Vaseline) in your first aid kit instead of antibiotic ointment and remember to flush all scrapes and cuts with copious amounts of clean water before covering them with the jelly.
    — Dr. Jill Grimes, CNN Money, 29 Aug. 2026
  • Ground surveys can provide more detailed information at a particular site, but covering an entire subway corridor that way would be difficult.
    — Rupendra Brahambhatt, Interesting Engineering, 29 Aug. 2026
Definition of covering
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.

Browse Nearby Words

understudy
understudying
undersupplies
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Understudying.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/understudying. Accessed 4 Sep. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

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

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of apiary

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

A List of Most Commonly Confused Words

Why do we use apostrophes to show possession?

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

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

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Sept. 4
See More

Popular

See More

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

The Longest Long Words List

Stay Woke
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
anagrams on a chalk board
Word Builder Quiz Vol. 2 Pick the letter that when added to a word will ma...
See All