HANKERING Synonyms: 149 Similar and Opposite Words

hankering 1 of 2

noun

as in craving

a strong wish for something I've had a hankering for pizza with anchovies all afternoon

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hankering

2 of 2

adjective

as in longing

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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 hankering

Noun

For those with a hankering for fine dining, head a few blocks north to MAASS and splurge on an intimate meal at its 14-seat Chef’s Counter. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 30 Sep. 2026 Prior to preproduction on Godzilla x Kong, Wingard, after a day of writing Face/Off 2 at Barrett’s place, had a hankering for some tacos. — Brian Davids, HollywoodReporter, 8 Sep. 2026 Orange dream freeze at Your 3rd Spot A little sweet and a little sassy, the orange dream freeze satisfies a hankering for a cocktail and a dessert. — Angela Hansberger, AJC.com, 21 June 2026 Though the bolt had an apparent hankering for coconuts and avoided a direct hit through my scalp, the current traveled through the earth, zapped my feet, and sent me jumping into the air and, ultimately, to the emergency room. — Joey Skladany, Travel + Leisure, 8 June 2026 If your hankering is for Chinese, then pop into bustling Taipei Express for a cheap and cheerful Sa Cha Chicken lunch combo. — Charlotte Observer, 16 Mar. 2026 This piece combines a supporting character palette with a leading lady frame to make something perfect for those who have a hankering to whitewash but know better. — Julia Harrison, Architectural Digest, 5 Feb. 2026 That’s the bit missing these days, and that’s why there’s a hankering for what some people call the West Ham Way. — Michael Walker, New York Times, 15 Jan. 2026 And for the kids who get a hankering to try the sport/lifestyle, consider a learn-to camp. — Moira McCarthy, Boston Herald, 31 Dec. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for hankering

Noun

Keep one in your freezer for whenever your pumpkin pie craving strikes.

— Jesse Szewczyk, Bon Appetit Magazine, 5 Oct. 2026
Jennifer King is getting brain surgery at Allegheny General Hospital to hopefully control her opioid addiction cravings.

— Meghan Schiller, CBS News, 28 Sep. 2026

Definition of craving

Noun

But resist the urge to throw every brightening ingredient at the problem.

— Glamour, Glamour, 2 Oct. 2026
In their eloquence and their ways of avoiding easy comfort, the poems also deal with the hushed experience of surviving someone else’s death and fulfill the urge to say something not only real and true but formal and exact, as though for a ceremony.

— Colm Tóibín, Literary Hub, 30 Sep. 2026

Definition of urge

Adjective

And over the next two decades, the games became more ambitious and elaborate, set in various time periods, even the future.

— Etan Vlessing, HollywoodReporter, 2 Oct. 2026
The most ambitious study of Flock's system so far is a recent one by University of South Carolina crime researchers Ian Adams and Scott Mourtgos.

— Greg Rosalsky, NPR, 2 Oct. 2026

Definition of ambitious

Noun

Alfonso recalled their discussions about how setting and movement could express the desire to survive.

— Lin Ying-Hsuan, Variety, 8 Oct. 2026
The desire for these transformative products was never innate, and LACMA’s exhibition zeroes in on that idea from the start.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 7 Oct. 2026

Definition of desire

Adjective

Starring Elordi and Barry Keoghan, Fennell’s dark comedy about class resentment and covetous destruction was sold on the promise of erotic excess.

— Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 9 Feb. 2026
For most players, that amount of storage is realistically enough for all but the most covetous data hoarders.

— Matt Kamen, Wired News, 3 Aug. 2025

Definition of covetous

Noun

The trend not only reflects the reach of the broader wellness and longevity movement, but also a thirst for communal experience and social connection, particularly in the wake of the pandemic.

— Will Stone, NPR, 5 Oct. 2026
Naturally, many of those discussions gravitated toward data centers and AI’s thirst for electrons.

— Andrew Freedman, CNN Money, 28 Sep. 2026

Definition of thirst

Adjective

Yet Before Hollywood became obsessed with Curry Barker, Markiplier opened the year in a submarine full of blood.

— Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 4 Oct. 2026
There are many ways to become obsessed with life’s frame rate, with the varying speed of an action and the way that time can be sliced or spun in the presentation.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 23 Sep. 2026