Did you know?
Careen and Career
Some people might be confused by the warning to not confuse careen and career, because the most common sense of career ("a profession") is not much like any of the meanings of careen. But when employed as a verb, career does have some semantic overlap with careen; both words may be used to mean "to go at top speed especially in a headlong manner." A car, for instance, may either careen or career. Some usage guides hold, however, that the car is only careening if there is side-to-side motion, as careen has other meanings related to movement, among which is "to sway from side to side."
Synonyms
Examples of careen in a Sentence
Stephen Sorace, Fox News, 14 May 2024
The beloved yet beleaguered pillar of casual dining abruptly shuttered dozens of locations this week, heightening speculation that the chain is careening toward bankruptcy.
—Marisa Gerber, Los Angeles Times, 14 May 2024
Maryland's Democratic Senate primary is careening toward a bitter finish as voters decide who to nominate in an unexpectedly competitive race in the deep blue bastion.
—Tal Axelrod, ABC News, 10 May 2024
The Earth is careening toward a dangerous level of global warming.
—Melvin Backman, Quartz, 8 May 2024
Abandoning all sense of order or control, a few of the sailors careened through the brig, demanding liquor from the frightened passengers.
—Eric Jay Dolin, Smithsonian Magazine, 6 May 2024
Another option: Install a robust system of defensive structures known as dolphins — circular concrete pillars located near a bridge's central supports that are designed to absorb the impact of a careening ship.
—Scott Neuman, NPR, 3 May 2024
However, the pair’s heart-to-heart unintentionally sets off a chain of events that sends Ponyboy and Johnny careening down a dangerous new path.
—EW.com, 12 Apr. 2024
The island’s wide, open beaches were perfect for careening hulls, beaching ships and listing them to one side to scrape off the foul barnacles and shipworms that infest the tropical Caribbean.
—Sean Kingsley, Smithsonian Magazine, 2 Apr. 2024
Alan Feuer, New York Times, 30 Mar. 2024
In the latest installment, Riley's ex-husband careens back into her life begging for help, and her private investigator boyfriend Nick Santiago doesn't want to get involved.
—Lizz Schumer, Peoplemag, 22 Mar. 2024
Architecture in 2024 Oscar best picture nominees careens from fantasy to willful ignorance.
—Andrew J. Campa, Los Angeles Times, 10 Mar. 2024
When a rock that could have been as wide as the island of Puerto Rico careens into the ocean, a tsunami will propagate around the world.
—Alka Tripathy-Lang, Ars Technica, 26 Jan. 2024
Later, on lap three, Lando Norris loses control of his McLaren on turn 11 after hitting a bump in the track and careens into a wall at top speed.
—David Hill, Rolling Stone, 14 Jan. 2024
The narrative careens through uncompelling territory before ending on a forgettable note.
—Lovia Gyarkye, The Hollywood Reporter, 30 Nov. 2023
Ramona’s confrontation with her ex Roxie Richter (Mae Whitman) takes place in a video store in which the two women careen magically through different movie genres.
—Adam B. Vary, Variety, 21 Nov. 2023
Manager Buck Rodgers suffers serious injuries when the team bus careens off the New Jersey Turnpike and slams into a grove of trees.
—Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 30 Aug. 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'careen.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Articles Related to careen
Dictionary Entries Near careen
Cite this Entry
“Careen.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/careen. Accessed 18 May. 2024.
Copy Citation
Share