congregating

verb

present participle of congregate
1
as in collecting
to bring together in one body or place both captains congregated their team members for some pregame strategizing

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in gathering
to come together into one body or place pilgrims have been congregating in the town's historic square for centuries

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 congregating The congregating gas molecules merge into larger bubbles at these sites. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 5 Aug. 2026 The sky was alive with millions of fluttering shapes, congregating into clouds at random, occasionally turning into ribbons that wound through the trees. — David A. Graham, The Atlantic, 28 July 2026 All attendees would go through security screening, and congregating in hallways would not be allowed. — Matthew Davisson, CBS News, 19 June 2026 And unlike some of the things that might spread during this event, there’s been a lot of evidence based on what’s happened at other World Cups, Olympic events, any time large numbers of people are congregating. — Lisa Gutierrez, Kansas City Star, 2 June 2026 The scenes of thousands of fans congregating to welcome the team bus on arrival are emblematic of the transformation. — James McNicholas, New York Times, 19 May 2026 According to the team, the event is even more incredible knowing that the whales were congregating far before the peak migration period usually spanning March and April. — Andrew Paul, Popular Science, 8 Apr. 2026 Over a two-year period, researchers at the Shark Lab used drones to study more than two dozen beaches up and down the California coastline and found juvenile white sharks congregating at two spots in southern Santa Barbara County and central San Diego County. — Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 27 Mar. 2026 Vandals quickly stripped it bare, from its electrical wiring to its rooftop mechanicals, and loiterers congregating outside its doors and in its parking lot sometimes numbered in the dozens during a difficult post-pandemic downturn for the Midway. — Frederick Melo, Twin Cities, 18 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for congregating
  1. collecting
  2. gathering
  3. assembling
  4. converging
  5. amassing
  6. meeting
  7. accumulating
  8. convening
Verb
  • Mechanicville, New York, Police Department Chief William Rabbitt told reporters that after more than a month of collecting evidence, investigators had an apparent motive for Amy Steadman, 64, and her daughter Sarah Myers, 44.
    — Matt Foster, ABC News, 4 Aug. 2026
  • When the first version can exist by morning, the founder can stop performing certainty and start collecting evidence.
    — Adam Ayers, Forbes.com, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of collecting
Verb
  • The spy satellite that changed intelligence forever Before satellites, gathering intelligence on the Soviet Union relied heavily on risky reconnaissance flights such as those carried out by the U-2 spy plane.
    — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 6 Aug. 2026
  • Pre-Production Planning Pre-production has become more valuable, especially the process of gathering inspiration, building mood boards and refining storyboards.
    — Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of gathering
Verb
  • Miami businessman Carlos de la Cruz, whose family knew the Fanjuls in Cuba, credited Alfonso and his brothers with assembling investors, buying land in Florida and building a sugar company that grew into the nation’s largest cane sugar producer.
    — Luisa Yanez, Miami Herald, 5 Aug. 2026
  • Schools on every level are already busy assembling coaches, players and recruits — assessing name, image and likeness potential as well as schedules and logistics — to get a head start.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of assembling
Verb
  • The MacBook and the iPad are slowly converging, and there is a certain level of cross-compatibility between apps.
    — Ewan Spence, Forbes.com, 2 Aug. 2026
  • All three brands are converging on the Matter interoperability standard, which is quietly collapsing what used to be the industry’s biggest selling point.
    — Lauren Jarvis-Gibson July 27, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 27 July 2026
Definition of converging
Verb
  • Federal prosecutors appear to be amassing a wide-ranging list of likely witnesses to take the stand in October when ex-Mayor Sheng Thao and three co-defendants face a criminal trial for charges of bribery and conspiracy.
    — Shomik Mukherjee, Mercury News, 31 July 2026
  • The billionaire founder of WeatherTech is amassing an impressive estate in an exclusive beachfront town in Palm Beach County.
    — Catherine Odom, Miami Herald, 22 July 2026
Definition of amassing
Verb
  • The cumulative impression of Alice that the book leaves is of someone moving serenely through life, meeting fond blessings and awful curses both with the same calm equanimity.
    — Ian Penman, Harpers Magazine, 4 Aug. 2026
  • After meeting at a Neville Brothers crawfish boil, the pair wandered through the French Quarter, eventually trailed by an impromptu parade of Deadheads.
    — SPIN Staff, SPIN, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of meeting
Verb
  • Some teachers recommend doing it weekly to catch missing work, spills from leaky water bottles and accumulating crumbs.
    — Cheyanne Mumphrey, Fortune, 4 Aug. 2026
  • If the organization pays for accumulation and charges for unlearning, accumulating is the correct strategy, and the man with two decades and a photograph for a pattern was doing exactly what those decades had paid him to do.
    — Vibhas Ratanjee, Forbes.com, 1 Aug. 2026
Definition of accumulating
Verb
  • But a federal judge has blocked the committee from convening.
    — Berkeley Lovelace Jr, NBC news, 6 Aug. 2026
  • Experienced leaders can contribute by convening people, mobilizing resources, building coalitions and turning ideas into execution.
    — Ricardo Bellino, Forbes.com, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of convening

Browse Nearby Words

congregates
congregating
congregation
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Congregating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/congregating. Accessed 9 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on congregating

Nglish: Translation of congregating for Spanish Speakers

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 anecdote

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

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

'Sneaked' or 'Snuck': Which is correct?

Why does English have so many silent letters?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Words of the Week - Aug. 7

How long is a jiffy?
See More

Popular

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

The Longest Long Words List

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
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
fridge-magnet-letters
Drop a Letter Quiz August 2026 Drop a letter from a word to make a totally diffe...
See All