thwack

1 of 2

verb

ˈthwak 

thwacked; thwacking; thwacks

transitive verb

: to strike with or as if with something flat or heavy : whack

thwack

2 of 2

noun

: a heavy blow : whack

also : the sound of or as if of such a blow

Synonyms of thwack

Verb

• slap
• smack
• hit
• punch
• knock
• bang
• clap
• slam
• whack
• strike
• bat
• pound
• swipe
• clip
• thump

Noun

• thud
• thump
• slap
• blow
• punch
• hit
• whack
• knock
• swipe
• smack
• pound
• stroke
• spank
• poke
• bang
• lick

Examples of thwack in a Sentence

Verb

A book fell off the shelf and thwacked me on the head.

thwacked the growling dog on the nose with a rolled-up newspaper

Noun

he gave the ball a hard thwack with the bat and sent it deep into the outfield

even from the top of the bleachers we could hear the loud thwack of the ball being hit

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Morrison Strikes the Student, Too A few moments later, Morrison thwacks the boy in the center with a footlong plastic cylinder. — Jennifer Smith Richards, ProPublica, 24 July 2026

Modern readers may take heart in the fact that there are many excellent critics thwacking through the slop—albeit with freelance machetes, on newfangled platforms. — Brittany Allen, Literary Hub, 27 Apr. 2026

Noun

At last week’s class, high-fives and hair-styling tips were generously distributed between thwacks of tennis balls. — Lynda Lin Grigsby, Los Angeles Times, 20 July 2026

The microphones pick up the rhythmic thwack of leather on leather as Zizou executes a series of short passes with teammates. — Sebastian Smee, The Atlantic, 11 July 2026

Word History

Etymology

Verb

imitative

First Known Use

Verb

circa 1530, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1587, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for thwack

• balk
• baulk
• bloc
• bock
• broch
• brock
• calk
• caulk
• chalk
• chock
• clock
• cock

Kids Definition

thwack

verb

ˈthwak

: to strike with or as if with something flat or heavy : whack

thwack noun