punch-drunk

adjective

ˈpənch-ˌdrəŋk How to pronounce punch-drunk (audio)
Definition of punch-drunknext
as in dazed
suffering from mental confusion punch-drunk from having stayed up all night, she struggled through the exam

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 punch-drunk The yen looked punch-drunk on Wednesday after a sudden spill overnight, pressured by wide interest rate differentials between Japan and the rest of the world. — Lim Hui Jie, CNBC, 19 June 2026 Candy thought so too, later recalling that the only hard part of filming the scene was doing it over and over again for Hughes and his punch-drunk crew. — Lizz Schumer, PEOPLE, 7 Oct. 2025 Guiducci arrives at a moment when some of that anger has subsided, and the punch-drunk culture seems counterintuitively eager to escape into nostalgia and tastemaking, splashy profiles, and — just sometimes — confrontational journalism. — Max Tani, semafor.com, 25 Aug. 2025 Having given us a punch-drunk vision of romantic dilemmas in her masterpiece of a debut, Song now delivers a more practical, hangover-adjacent look at how the human need for relationships gets turned into a bespoke luxury item. — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 12 June 2025 Only the most punch-drunk partisan would give Republicans as much as a 50-50 chance of succeeding Gavin Newsom. — Mark Barabak, Mercury News, 30 Apr. 2025 It’s better described as a series of springy volleys backward and forward through time—the movie ping-pongs between 2019 and 2006, with stops in between—that leave you feeling a little dizzy, even a bit punch-drunk. — Stephanie Zacharek, TIME, 26 Apr. 2024 The notion that anyone might make a beeline to turn this punch-drunk nonsense into a new Statham franchise seems unlikely. — David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 10 Jan. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for punch-drunk
  1. dazed
  2. bewildered
  3. confused
  4. distracted
  5. stunned
  6. dizzy
Adjective
  • Daemon struggles to his feet, dazed, and begins cleaving his way through the smouldering city.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026
  • Grutman approaches Hart’s character, who is on the ground dazed and disheveled from a wild night out.
    — Madeleine Marr, Miami Herald, 29 July 2026
Definition of dazed
Adjective
  • That bewildered shake of the head after Meyer's pitch in that video is not a rare occurrence for Raleigh this year.
    — Eno Sarris, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2026
  • On Douban, a popular Chinese movie-review platform, viewers piled on with mocking and bewildered comments.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 17 Aug. 2026
Definition of bewildered
Adjective
  • After all, the greatest art often emerges from those who are at their most vulnerable, confused and lost.
    — Billy J. Stratton, The Conversation, 21 Aug. 2026
  • Instead, the confused driver took them north of the city to Stoneham before finally turning around.
    — Logan Hall, CBS News, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of confused
Adjective
  • Passengers can also help prevent distracted driving by speaking up if a driver loses focus and assisting with navigation or other tasks to minimize distractions.
    — Anthony Thompson, USA Today, 20 Aug. 2026
  • Common behaviors that can establish negligence include speeding, distracted driving, following too closely, running a red light, or making an unsafe lane change.
    — Matthew Kayser, Kansas City Star, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of distracted
Adjective
  • Vehicles were buried, and some stunned survivors were caked in mud.
    — Shristi Kafle, Fortune, 27 Aug. 2026
  • Debris hung from tree branches and wires, vehicles were buried and some stunned survivors were caked in mud.
    — Niranjan Shrestha, Los Angeles Times, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of stunned
Adjective
  • Most patients feel dizzy, nauseated and weak within 30 to 60 minutes.
    — Prayan Pokharel, The Conversation, 27 Aug. 2026
  • The incident comes just weeks after Richie was similarly forced to postpone two shows after becoming dizzy during a performance in Minnesota in June.
    — Jessica Schladebeck, New York Daily News, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of dizzy

Browse Nearby Words

punch
punch-drunk
punched
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Cite this Entry

“Punch-drunk.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/punch-drunk. Accessed 30 Aug. 2026.

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