as in dazed
suffering from mental confusion
punch-drunk from having stayed up all night, she struggled through the exam
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Recent Examples of punch-drunk
That’s a bigger punchline than a punch-drunk Russian robot.
—
Newsweek Staff, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Nov. 2025
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
What’s going on is that the movie is getting punch-drunk.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 12 Mar. 2023
Newsweek Staff, MSNBC Newsweek, 13 Nov. 2025
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
What’s going on is that the movie is getting punch-drunk.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 12 Mar. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for punch-drunk
Adjective
-
The scramble to get the show launched has left Tierney and Brady a bit dazed.—
Michael Schneider,
Variety,
22 Dec. 2025
-
Meanwhile, the Golden Globes has officially added a podcast category, and even though no one quite knows what to make of it, folks seem dazed enough to roll with it nevertheless.—
Nicholas Quah,
Vulture,
8 Dec. 2025
Adjective
-
The movie took liberties, but White's fight for Stuart to be a mouse-like boy is an important part of his history, even if some are bewildered by it.—
Angela Andaloro,
PEOPLE,
13 Dec. 2025
-
Uma is bewildered at this new world, while Gopal can’t so much as look at her.—
Alison Willmore,
Vulture,
1 Dec. 2025
Adjective
-
Goedert scored his second touchdown on a fourth-and-2 leaving a confused Malik Mustapha behind him in the left flat.—
Chris Biderman,
Sacbee.com,
12 Jan. 2026
-
Yet many of its citizens feel both whiplashed and confused.—
Margaret Talbot,
New Yorker,
11 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
In Arizona, our driving laws are influenced by factors like busy freeways in metro Phoenix, monsoon season flooding, outdated transportation modes and distracted driving laws.—
Shelby Slade,
AZCentral.com,
6 Jan. 2026
-
That the impossible standards we're sold are designed to keep us small, distracted, and spending money on the next fix.—
Sarah Oreck,
SELF,
6 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
She was later reunited with her dog, stroking him in stunned silence before being taken to the hospital.—
Danielle Bacher,
PEOPLE,
20 Jan. 2026
-
The stunned Rams went three-and-out on their first overtime possession, a team with a future Hall of Fame quarterback surrendering with three runs that were indicative of questionable McVay play-calling throughout the game.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
19 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Signs of dehydration include dry mouth and throat, infrequent urination and feeling dizzy when standing up.—
James Powel,
USA Today,
14 Jan. 2026
-
Some people may feel dizzy or faint when working out in a fasted state, which can be dangerous if lifting heavy weights.—
Jillian Kubala,
Health,
8 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Punch-drunk.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/punch-drunk. Accessed 23 Jan. 2026.
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