as in pregnant
containing unborn young within the body
the special nutritional needs of expecting women
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in anticipating
to believe in the future occurrence of (something)
we expect their arrival late this afternoon
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of expecting
Kelli Bender, PEOPLE, 24 Nov. 2025
Meredith Wilshere, PEOPLE, 1 Feb. 2026
Zediker said the district is expecting about 800 new students over the next five years, and that the district believes the additions would house growing student numbers for the next 12 to 15 years.
—Molly Morrow, Chicago Tribune, 31 Jan. 2026
Season 3 of the show saw Kate and Anthony expecting their first child.
—Christina Perrier, InStyle, 31 Jan. 2026
And now Tom Pohlad is expecting a competitive team to be built from that rubble while simultaneously slashing payroll by another $30 million.
—Aaron Gleeman, New York Times, 31 Jan. 2026
Tampa is expecting to get back top defenseman Victor Hedman, who has been out with an elbow injury since early December.
—Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 31 Jan. 2026
Both are on edge, expecting ICE to show up any moment and tear their lives apart.
—Alicia Victoria Lozano, NBC news, 31 Jan. 2026
This comes as the chief executive officer of listings platform Zillow is expecting a slow year for US housing.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 7 Jan. 2026
But the question wasn’t the one Aisha was expecting.
—Literary Hub, 7 Jan. 2026
Adjective
This news marks the first time the National Zoo has had an expecting Asian elephant in nearly 25 years.
—Kelli Bender, PEOPLE, 24 Nov. 2025
Verb
The Patriots were only up by four points, expecting their dreams to be crushed, but then the unthinkable happened — all thanks to undrafted rookie cornerback Malcolm Butler.
—Meredith Wilshere, PEOPLE, 1 Feb. 2026
Zediker said the district is expecting about 800 new students over the next five years, and that the district believes the additions would house growing student numbers for the next 12 to 15 years.
—Molly Morrow, Chicago Tribune, 31 Jan. 2026
Season 3 of the show saw Kate and Anthony expecting their first child.
—Christina Perrier, InStyle, 31 Jan. 2026
And now Tom Pohlad is expecting a competitive team to be built from that rubble while simultaneously slashing payroll by another $30 million.
—Aaron Gleeman, New York Times, 31 Jan. 2026
Tampa is expecting to get back top defenseman Victor Hedman, who has been out with an elbow injury since early December.
—Steve Conroy, Boston Herald, 31 Jan. 2026
Both are on edge, expecting ICE to show up any moment and tear their lives apart.
—Alicia Victoria Lozano, NBC news, 31 Jan. 2026
This comes as the chief executive officer of listings platform Zillow is expecting a slow year for US housing.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 7 Jan. 2026
But the question wasn’t the one Aisha was expecting.
—Literary Hub, 7 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for expecting
Adjective
-
Idaho prenatal care is slipping, group says Idaho Voices for Children, a nonprofit that advocates for child welfare, says the state’s health care system for pregnant women, new moms, babies and kids has become increasingly strained.—
Angela Palermo
February 1,
Idaho Statesman,
1 Feb. 2026
-
Clinicians often recommend immediate delivery when pregnant people are diagnosed with HELLP syndrome, even before full-term.—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
1 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Before Penelope and Colin's love story played out on season 3, fans were already anticipating the best friends coupling up.—
Sophie Dodd,
PEOPLE,
29 Jan. 2026
-
Attorneys wrote that the team induced coaches to terminate their agreements with MVSC and join the Sporting umbrella, anticipating that players would follow them.—
Nathan Pilling,
Kansas City Star,
28 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Her impulse control is practically gone.—
Cara Lynn Shultz,
PEOPLE,
21 Jan. 2026
-
Clouds have evaporated into practically nothing and are expected to stay gone.—
Rick Hurd,
Mercury News,
14 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
During the operation, the suspects rented a shipping container to store materials and millions of counterfeit tablets awaiting distribution.—
Bonny Chu,
FOXNews.com,
30 Jan. 2026
-
Zenada Greer, the fifth defendant in the case, was arrested in Kentucky and is awaiting extradition to Indiana on obstruction and assisting a criminal charges.—
Aaron Katersky,
ABC News,
29 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Expecting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/expecting. Accessed 3 Feb. 2026.
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