yawning

adjective

yawn·​ing ˈyȯ-niŋ How to pronounce yawning (audio)
1
: wide open : cavernous
a yawning hole
yawning gaps in the plot
2
: showing fatigue or boredom by yawns
a yawning audience
yawningly adverb

Examples of yawning in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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.
The nation has also a yawning fiscal deficit, a trade deficit of $43 billion, plus a daunting $45 billion debt to the International Monetary Fund, with $10.6 billion due to the multilateral and private creditors by April. Débora Rey, The Christian Science Monitor, 13 Dec. 2023 Dellandrea still impresses: Stars forward Ty Dellandrea picked up his third assist of the season on Tuesday, working his way to a puck and finding Wyatt Johnston for a yawning cage in the second period. Dallas News, 25 Oct. 2022 In Palm Beach County, Ian's yawning reach spun up four tornadoes. Jennifer Borresen, USA Today, 10 Jan. 2023 Wet Leg make fun of something that Harry Styles couldn’t quite capture in his cover of their song on BBC Radio 1: the yawning banality of male attention. Los Angeles Times, 4 Dec. 2022 But McNamara obtained the transcripts and discovered yawning contradictions. Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 9 June 2022 Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York may be at opposite ends of the ideological spectrum, but a more yawning gap between figures in the party has existed before. John Dickerson, The Atlantic, 1 Mar. 2022 The tunnels, some a yawning 33 feet in diameter and running up to 300 feet below city streets, stretch 109 miles and collectively hold 2.3 billion gallons of water. New York Times, 17 May 2020 In the interim, there was a yawning increase in American’s appetite for streaming entertainment at home. Chris Wilson, Time, 9 June 2021

Word History

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of yawning was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near yawning

Cite this Entry

“Yawning.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/yawning. Accessed 2 Dec. 2024.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

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