as in discovery
the act or process of sighting or learning the existence of something for the first time
the spotting of a new bird is always a thrill for an avid bird-watcher
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in sprinkling
to mark with small spots especially unevenly
to give the effect of sunlight on water, the artist spotted the lake in his painting with flecks of gold paint
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in noticing
to make note of (something) through the use of one's eyes
I spotted both of them as they tried to sneak out the back door
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in spraying
to cover by or as if by scattering something over or on
the TV networks had spotted reporters all over the state for the election
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 spotting
Rachael O'Connor, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Oct. 2025
The pup, who is described as playful and curious, has become a star in her own right on board, with plenty of cruise travelers vying for a spotting or photo op.
—Kait Hanson, Southern Living, 21 Oct. 2025
According to Us Weekly, the first spotting of this tattoo was in April 2021 at the ACM Awards.
—Michelle Lee, PEOPLE, 1 Oct. 2025
Farther east, Amsterdamse Bos is a forest three times larger than Central Park, with lots of trails and wildlife spotting—and even a ropes-and-zip line course.
—Blane Bachelor, AFAR Media, 1 Oct. 2025
Capitol Reef was designated an International Dark Sky Park in 2015, and autumn's cool, clear nights are a great time to go constellation spotting.
—Patricia Doherty, Travel + Leisure, 16 Sep. 2025
In MLPerf Tiny benchmarks, the X160 Gen 2 reportedly delivered 2x the performance of competing solutions with a similar small footprint, across workloads like keyword spotting, image classification, and anomaly detection.
—Marco Chiappetta, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
As the inversion lifts in the afternoon, fire behavior will increase to the north and northeast, with group torching, spotting, and uphill runs in mixed conifer stands containing heavy dead and down material.
—Ca Wildfire Bot, Sacbee.com, 2 Sep. 2025
Kissing Bugs Kissing bugs are small, dark, wingless insects with reddish spotting.
—Cristina Mutchler, Verywell Health, 2 Sep. 2025
Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 24 Oct. 2025
The robot is also capable of spotting the charging spot perfectly in electric vehicles.
—Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 24 Oct. 2025
This creates an ideal backdrop for spotting even the faintest meteors as Earth passes through the debris trail left by Halley’s Comet.
—Hannah Parry, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Oct. 2025
The section of the body of water near Mesa is popular for tubing and spotting wild horses.
—Sam Gillette, PEOPLE, 20 Oct. 2025
Known for its emphasis on work-life balance, connection with nature, and consistent place on the list of happiest countries in the world, Finland boasts gorgeous lakes, a robust sauna culture, incredible wildlife, northern lights spotting, and more.
—Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 17 Oct. 2025
Health inspectors gave the market a yellow placard after spotting five flies throughout the facilty.
—Camila Pedrosa, Sacbee.com, 17 Oct. 2025
But for collectors, spotting the Daytona, the Pepsi, and the Seiko in their natural context is a reward in itself.
—Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 17 Oct. 2025
Depending on the situation, spotting a drone can spark excitement — especially at live music performances or sporting events, where they’re often used for aerial footage and crowd shots.
—Diana Leyva, Nashville Tennessean, 15 Oct. 2025
Noun
This year's Orionids shower is due to peak when there is a new moon, providing darker skies and ideal conditions for meteor spotting.
—Rachael O'Connor, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Oct. 2025
The pup, who is described as playful and curious, has become a star in her own right on board, with plenty of cruise travelers vying for a spotting or photo op.
—Kait Hanson, Southern Living, 21 Oct. 2025
According to Us Weekly, the first spotting of this tattoo was in April 2021 at the ACM Awards.
—Michelle Lee, PEOPLE, 1 Oct. 2025
Farther east, Amsterdamse Bos is a forest three times larger than Central Park, with lots of trails and wildlife spotting—and even a ropes-and-zip line course.
—Blane Bachelor, AFAR Media, 1 Oct. 2025
Capitol Reef was designated an International Dark Sky Park in 2015, and autumn's cool, clear nights are a great time to go constellation spotting.
—Patricia Doherty, Travel + Leisure, 16 Sep. 2025
In MLPerf Tiny benchmarks, the X160 Gen 2 reportedly delivered 2x the performance of competing solutions with a similar small footprint, across workloads like keyword spotting, image classification, and anomaly detection.
—Marco Chiappetta, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
As the inversion lifts in the afternoon, fire behavior will increase to the north and northeast, with group torching, spotting, and uphill runs in mixed conifer stands containing heavy dead and down material.
—Ca Wildfire Bot, Sacbee.com, 2 Sep. 2025
Kissing Bugs Kissing bugs are small, dark, wingless insects with reddish spotting.
—Cristina Mutchler, Verywell Health, 2 Sep. 2025
Verb
Between the timing and Elsbeth spotting a shiny, brand-new replacement for Johnny’s beat-up old harness and carabiner, the jig is up, giving Elsbeth a moment to shine on the set of Raquel’s Behind the Black Veil interview, prosecuting her case in the persona of a reality-show host.
—Sophie Brookover, Vulture, 24 Oct. 2025
The robot is also capable of spotting the charging spot perfectly in electric vehicles.
—Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 24 Oct. 2025
This creates an ideal backdrop for spotting even the faintest meteors as Earth passes through the debris trail left by Halley’s Comet.
—Hannah Parry, MSNBC Newsweek, 21 Oct. 2025
The section of the body of water near Mesa is popular for tubing and spotting wild horses.
—Sam Gillette, PEOPLE, 20 Oct. 2025
Known for its emphasis on work-life balance, connection with nature, and consistent place on the list of happiest countries in the world, Finland boasts gorgeous lakes, a robust sauna culture, incredible wildlife, northern lights spotting, and more.
—Evie Carrick, Travel + Leisure, 17 Oct. 2025
Health inspectors gave the market a yellow placard after spotting five flies throughout the facilty.
—Camila Pedrosa, Sacbee.com, 17 Oct. 2025
But for collectors, spotting the Daytona, the Pepsi, and the Seiko in their natural context is a reward in itself.
—Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 17 Oct. 2025
Depending on the situation, spotting a drone can spark excitement — especially at live music performances or sporting events, where they’re often used for aerial footage and crowd shots.
—Diana Leyva, Nashville Tennessean, 15 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for spotting
Noun
-
The discovery offers a powerful way to give waste plastics a second life as high-performance materials, advancing both a circular economy and next-generation clean technologies.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
27 Oct. 2025
-
According to the historian of science Vidar Enebakk, Scoresby’s report intrigued proponents of scientific discovery and Arctic exploration.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
27 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Vrabel is gunning for her, her team and anyone standing in his path, sprinkling salt on select wounds along the way.—
Andrew Callahan,
Boston Herald,
16 Oct. 2025
-
TikTok creators and influencers have been filming themselves pouring honey onto a spoon, or even on the back of their hand, and sprinkling it with salt — many opting for natural options of both — and taking a dose before heading to the gym.—
Angelica Stabile,
FOXNews.com,
29 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
What researchers actually discovered is a small asteroid following Earth’s orbit, one that’s been traveling alongside us for decades without anyone noticing.—
Tiffani Jackson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
27 Oct. 2025
-
But the smart ones were noticing.—
Tatiana Siegel,
Variety,
27 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Folklorist Thomas Keightley tells the tale of a kobold named Hödeken who was insulted by a kitchen boy who kept spraying water at him.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
27 Oct. 2025
-
Iowa State researchers said spraying pyrethroid insecticides, such as Permethrin or Esfenvalerate, on the outside of buildings when the beetles appear may help prevent pest entry, especially for large infestations.—
Jalen Williams,
Freep.com,
27 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
The findings are corroborated by the fact that molestus was first described as a species in 1775 in Egypt by naturalist Peter Forsskål.—
Jacopo Prisco,
CNN Money,
24 Oct. 2025
-
Tylenol was noted in the findings of the search warrant.—
Joy Williams,
Harpers Magazine,
24 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
The area put on a display of yellow aspen trees dotting the mountains between evergreens, their delicate leaves vibrating in the wind.—
Jessica Coacci,
Fortune,
14 Oct. 2025
-
Sydney in the eighties was sometimes called the San Francisco of the Southern Hemisphere, known for its drag clubs and bathhouses dotting a downtown strip nicknamed the Golden Mile.—
Eren Orbey,
New Yorker,
13 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
In his eight wins, all eight have come inside the distance, with only two fights seeing a second round.—
Brett Appley,
New York Times,
25 Oct. 2025
-
Looking forward to seeing Becks on our plane ride home.—
Lydia Mee,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
His friend's grandfather, who fell, had a watch with fall detection technology.—
Madeline Mitchell,
USA Today,
26 Oct. 2025
-
Furthermore, by leveraging graphene’s unique electrical and surface properties, researchers can design sensors that maintain high accuracy and consistent performance under demanding conditions, paving the way for more dependable, versatile, and widely applicable lithium detection tools.—
Bojan Stojkovski,
Interesting Engineering,
26 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Spotting.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/spotting. Accessed 30 Oct. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share