treading water treading mill • treadle · · · Info · Definitions · Characters · · treading water · · Text Common · · Latin · · Scripts 14 · · Length 4 · · Syllables Definitions · · · (noun) a stroke that keeps the head above water by thrashing the legs and arms. Synonyms: treading water. · · Noun Definition 1 Characters · · space U+0020 a latin small letter a U+0061 d latin small letter d U+0064 e latin small letter e U+0065 g latin small letter g U+0067 i latin small letter i U+0069 n latin small letter n U+006E r latin small letter r U+0072 t latin small letter t U+0074 w latin small letter w U+0077