dinged; dinging; dings
: to dwell on with tiresome repetition
keeps dinging it into him that the less he smokes the better—
Samuel Butler †1902
Samuel Butler †1902
: an instance of minor surface damage (such as a dent)
dinged; dinging; dings
1
informal
a
: to strike or knock against
got dinged on the elbow
b
: to cause minor surface damage to
ding a car door
c
: to do harm to
… has struggled of late to win customers back after reports of a norovirus outbreak … circulated in July, once again dinging the chain's reputation.—Sarah Whitten
Sarah WhittenIf they don't hit the mark, their review, pay, and chances at promotion get dinged.—Nanette Byrnes et al.
Nanette Byrnes et al.
d
: to cause a usually minor injury to
On Jan. 20, Joel Embiid dinged his knee in a game against the Portland Trail Blazers. The ever-cautious Sixers held the big man out of the next two games with what was described as a "left knee contusion."
2
informal
: to penalize or criticize
Joseph's time hasn't been without some controversy, including recently when the state dinged the district for starting the year with several administrators not holding Tennessee teaching and administrative licenses.—Jason Gonzales
Jason GonzalesHistorical accounts dinged the Cadburys for not doing enough to help with cocoa worker conditions and slavery in Africa.—Michael S. Rosenwald
Michael S. RosenwaldExamples of ding in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Steve Lopez, Los Angeles Times, 19 Apr. 2025
Each application requires the card issuer or lender to pull your credit report, which results in a hard inquiry on your report and dings your credit score a few points.
—Dan Avery, CNBC, 11 Mar. 2025
R. Scott Rappold, Denver Post, 4 July 2025
Luxury hotels took it a step further in the late 19th century by adding a bell, and the bellhop—a porter who could be summoned with the ding of a bell—became ubiquitous.
—Katherine Lagrave, AFAR Media, 26 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for ding
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Verb
La Cañada resident Trent Sanders, who frequently dings California’s liberal politicos in emails to me and my colleagues, thinks Trump is generally on the right track three months into his term, but with a few caveats.
—Steve Lopez, Los Angeles Times, 19 Apr. 2025
Each application requires the card issuer or lender to pull your credit report, which results in a hard inquiry on your report and dings your credit score a few points.
—Dan Avery, CNBC, 11 Mar. 2025
Noun
Some makes and models are much more advanced, with features like skid plates to guard against dings, different rock, mud, and sand settings, winches for towing, and other capabilities.
—R. Scott Rappold, Denver Post, 4 July 2025
Luxury hotels took it a step further in the late 19th century by adding a bell, and the bellhop—a porter who could be summoned with the ding of a bell—became ubiquitous.
—Katherine Lagrave, AFAR Media, 26 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for ding
Cite this Entry
“Ding.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ding. Accessed 12 Jul. 2025.
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