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Synonyms

meander

1 American  
[mee-an-der] / miˈæn dər /

verb (used without object)

  1. to proceed by or take a winding or indirect course.

    The stream meandered through the valley.
    Synonyms:
    coil, snake, twist, wind, wander

  2. to wander aimlessly; ramble.

    The talk meandered on.

verb (used with object)

  1. Surveying. to define the margin of (a body of water) with a meander line.

noun

  1. Usually meanders. turnings or windings; a winding path or course.

  2. a circuitous movement or journey.

  3. an intricate variety of fret or fretwork.

Meander 2 American  
[mee-an-der] / miˈæn dər /

noun

  1. ancient name of the Menderes.

Meander 1 British  
/ miːˈændə /

noun

  1. a variant spelling of Maeander

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
meander 2 British  
/ mɪˈændə /

verb

  1. to follow a winding course

  2. to wander without definite aim or direction

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

noun

  1. (often plural) a curve or bend, as in a river

  2. (often plural) a winding course or movement

  3. an ornamental pattern, esp as used in ancient Greek architecture

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
meander Scientific  
/ mē-ăn′dər /

  1. A sinuous curve, bend, or loop along the course of a stream or river.

Other Word Forms

  • meanderer noun
  • meandering adjective
  • meanderingly adverb
  • meandrous adjective

Etymology

Origin of meander

1570–80; < Latin maeander < Greek maíandros a winding, special use of Maíandros, the Menderes River, noted for its winding course

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

From a certain point of view, it makes sense to concentrate the art into discrete thematic galleries, and to treat the space between them as flowing interstitial fluid through which the visitor can meander happily.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 29, 2025

Over the green hills, we meander beyond Happy Valley to find Repulse Bay.

From Salon • Jul. 12, 2025

It’s like a river that once flowed relatively straight has begun to meander more wildly.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 15, 2025

Kids stay up late, ice cream becomes a food group and people are out and about, undergirded by an unspoken permission to meander through the days.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 14, 2024

Always elegantly dressed, he would meander across the room, stopping to chat with men working at different stations.

From "The Boy on the Wooden Box" by Leon Leyson

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.