captaining

verb

present participle of captain
1
as in supervising
to be in charge of if you do well on this, you'll be asked to captain the next mission

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in governing
to exercise authority or power over captained the project for a few days while the boss was out of town

Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in leading
to serve as leader of you did a good job of captaining the team

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 captaining Baresi is regarded as an AC Milan icon, having spent his entire 20-year career with the club, winning six Serie A titles and three top European trophies, and captaining the team for 15 seasons before retiring in 1997. — CNN Money, 31 July 2026 Couch was captaining a 31-foot boat owned by Lighthouse Parasail out of the Middle Keys city of Marathon, towing Supraja Alaparthi, 33, her then 10-year-old son and her nephew, who was nine years old at the time. — David Goodhue, Miami Herald, 30 July 2026 Verhoeff is not only expected to be a big part of North Dakota’s blue line this upcoming season but will likely once again play at the World Junior Championships, possibly captaining the Canadian team with the tournament taking place in Edmonton. — Curtis Pashelka, Mercury News, 24 July 2026 The Argentine legend, captaining his side, scored twice in the quarterfinal match against England at the 1986 FIFA World Cup, giving Argentina a 2–1 victory. — Tushaar Kuthiala, Encyclopedia Britannica, 16 July 2026 Argentina’s World Cup triumph in 2022 saw Messi emulate Diego Maradona by captaining his country to the title. — Mark Hodge, NBC news, 15 July 2026 Blorian is just as physically imposing as Mosquera and comes off captaining Hapoel Be’er Sheva to a cup and league double. — Daniel Sperry, Kansas City Star, 2 July 2026 Stokes retired from international cricket during the third Test against New Zealand, which concluded on Monday as the tourists claimed the series 2-1, after four years captaining the national team. — Dominic Fifield, New York Times, 30 June 2026 And so, without Haaland in front to bash the ball into the goal, or Martin Ødegaard, fresh from captaining his club team, Arsenal, to a Premier League title, taking on France would have to be a full-team effort. — Louisa Thomas, New Yorker, 27 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for captaining
  1. supervising
  2. governing
  3. leading
  4. overseeing
  5. ruling
  6. commanding
  7. handling
  8. managing
Verb
  • Diego Amson, Brad Tiemann and Joe Awgul serve as co-exec producers, Margaret Morales is supervising producer and Benjamin Hurvitz and Melissa Tallerine exec produce for MTV.
    — Peter White, Deadline, 15 July 2026
  • Officers are working to gather information regarding the circumstances that may have led up to the crash, including who was supervising the children.
    — Caroline Zimmerman, Kansas City Star, 14 July 2026
Definition of supervising
Verb
  • In uncertain environments, a single governing objective plus constraints felt simpler than genuine multi-objective balancing.
    — Steve Denning, Forbes.com, 3 Aug. 2026
  • The lawsuit calls for Sigcho-López to be included on the ballot and for state law governing independent runs for office to be declared unconstitutional.
    — Jake Sheridan, Chicago Tribune, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of governing
Verb
  • For context, the median private SaaS company generates about $141,000 of revenue per employee, while the leading AI-native companies are running at twenty times that or more.
    — Michael Wee, Forbes.com, 3 Aug. 2026
  • Washington is in the midst of a record-setting statewide drought, leading the governor to issue a statewide burn ban on Saturday.
    — Robbie Griffiths, NPR, 2 Aug. 2026
Definition of leading
Verb
  • His character is spiritual, punctual and deeply religious, yet silently overseeing a very misogynistic, racist and drug-addled workforce.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 29 July 2026
  • If a medical clinic can’t clearly answer who’s overseeing your care or what’s in the syringe, that’s a reason to walk away, not a technicality.
    — Carrie Teegardin, AJC.com, 29 July 2026
Definition of overseeing
Verb
  • On Tuesday, the ruling Liberal Democratic party advanced the bill through key committees, with Nikkei reporting Takaichi wants cabinet approval by this month, and for the bill to be tabled in parliament in the autumn.
    — Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 4 Aug. 2026
  • The ruling United Russia party is seeking to preserve its dominance in the lower house of parliament in a race against the Communist Party and a couple of other parties that vote in sync with the Kremlin on key issues.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of ruling
Verb
  • Tellingly, studios avoided releasing any titles last weekend to not risk falling between the commanding openings for Christopher Nolan’s mythological epic and Brand New Day.
    — Ryan Gajewski, HollywoodReporter, 1 Aug. 2026
  • San Francisco's luxury market has become one of the country's hottest, with marquee homes routinely attracting seven-figure bidding wars and trophy properties commanding premiums well above asking.
    — Natalie Hoberman, Forbes.com, 31 July 2026
Definition of commanding
Verb
  • The Fulton County District Attorney’s Office is handling the prosecution, 11 Alive reported.
    — Charna Flam, PEOPLE, 4 Aug. 2026
  • Gloves combine heavy-duty heat resistance with a flexible, comfortable fit for grilling, smoking, cooking and handling hot equipment.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of handling
Verb
  • The traveler is left managing multiple confirmations, while employees may lack a complete picture of the guest’s plans.
    — Jeff Fromm, Forbes.com, 30 July 2026
  • While none of Zero100′s clients had come under attack in the strait, O’Marah said some had decided to avoid that risk by actively managing inventories and rerouting shipments.
    — Chloe Taylor,Sam Meredith,Lee Ying Shan, CNBC, 30 July 2026
Definition of managing

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Cite this Entry

“Captaining.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/captaining. Accessed 5 Aug. 2026.

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