peppering

verb

present participle of pepper
1
as in spraying
to cover by or as if by scattering something over or on pepper the costume with flecks of glitter

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance
2
as in sprinkling
to mark with small spots especially unevenly spilled flour peppered the kitchen floor

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 peppering Featuring cameos from Latin superstars like Peso Pluma, J Balvin and Ryan Castro, the LP itself is hard to define as simply house music; RØZ is known best for peppering its EDM with a heavy dose of Latino sazon. — Andrea Flores, Los Angeles Times, 13 Aug. 2026 Finding all these guys, and so many more peppering the scene, served as an important reminder. — Literary Hub, 7 Aug. 2026 As an amateur race car driver, the villa’s owner wanted elements of his passion peppering the interior. — Annabelle Dufraigne, Architectural Digest, 14 July 2026 Yamal was a thorn in Saudi Arabia’s side, drifting infield to unleash shots from distance but also peppering the penalty area with wicked deliveries from the right flank. — Mark Carey, New York Times, 2 July 2026 Wright asked, peppering in a rather colorful adjective. — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 24 June 2026 Sunnei emerged on the international scene with unexpected and inventive show concepts, and the designers share with Franco Moschino a tongue-in-cheek attitude to fashion, peppering their collections with fashion commentary. — Luisa Zargani, Footwear News, 21 June 2026 The meeting went off the rails when Pelley, a 50-year veteran journalist, began peppering Bilton with questions and accused Weiss of destroying the show’s sterling reputation. — Cheyenne Roundtree, Rolling Stone, 3 June 2026 The charm offensive was benefited Rubio peppering in a number of jokes during his hourlong appearance. — Washington Examiner Staff, The Washington Examiner, 7 May 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for peppering
  1. spraying
  2. sprinkling
  3. dotting
Verb
  • While Blanche didn’t cite specific incidents, Pirro’s office last week charged a Kentucky woman with vandalism for spraying the World War II memorial on the National Mall with graffiti.
    — Bloomberg News, Boston Herald, 17 Aug. 2026
  • The proposal would require applicators to provide at least 72 hours’ notice before spraying within a half-mile of those areas.
    — Christiana Freitag, Chicago Tribune, 16 Aug. 2026
Definition of spraying
Verb
  • Wheat, rice, and corn flours are the three most common options for sprinkling over your soil.
    — Ashley Chalmers, The Spruce, 14 Aug. 2026
  • But by the 1960s, the techniques of Central Texas — sprinkling briskets with salt and pepper and cooking them over indirect heat — started to become more commonplace.
    — Catherine Garcia, TheWeek, 13 Aug. 2026
Definition of sprinkling
Verb
  • The scoring was tit for tat to the end, with winger Stravino Jacobs and captain Marcell Coetzee dotting down for the Bulls, and Carter and Wallace Sititi replying for New Zealand's second straight 50-pointer.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 15 Aug. 2026
  • In one of the last shots, Camille’s character lies flat on a bed with stab wounds dotting her abdomen.
    — Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of dotting

Browse Nearby Words

peppered
peppering
pepperoni
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Peppering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/peppering. Accessed 22 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on peppering

Nglish: Translation of peppering 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 august

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

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

How to Pronounce the Trickiest Menu Items

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Do you 'say your piece' or 'say your peace'?

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Aug. 21

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

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

Words from the 'Odyssey'

The Longest Long Words List
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
alt-684346df967d5
Add A Letter Quiz Pick the letter that goes in the same spot in fou...
See All