ping

1 of 2

noun

1
: a sharp sound like that of a striking bullet
2
3
: the pulse of sound waves reflected from or emitted by a submerged object in submarine signaling or detection and heard by special apparatus
Baylor … trained his sound unit from one bearing to another, listening for submarines. It threw out a directional sound beam, a series of "pings." These pings, if they hit a solid object like a submarine, reflected back to the operator.William J. Lederer
4
: a signal sent from one computer to another across a network for usually diagnostic purposes (as to determine network speed or the status of the target computer)
With Napster, however, all you have to do is type in the name of the song or artist and up will pop 2,745 Phish songs sorted by the host computer's type of modem connection and ping rate.Karl Taro Greenfeld

ping

2 of 2

verb

pinged; pinging; pings

intransitive verb

1
: to make a ping
2
: to ricochet with a ping
gravel pinging off … the carMargaret Atwood

transitive verb

1
: to cause to ping
ping a bell
2
: to locate (something, such as a submerged object or submarine) by detecting the reflection of a pulse of sound waves : to send out a ping (see ping entry 1 sense 3) in order to locate (something)
We will have to follow this big old boy on the surface and then try to ping him with the sonar when he dives.Corwin Ericson
3
a
: to send a signal to (a computer) in order to determine its status or the status of the connecting network
Without realizing what he was doing, he pinged every server in a .gov domain. Next day, his ISP canceled his account; the retribution was swift and uncompromising.Bill Machrone
b
: to send a signal to (a device, such as a cell phone) in order to determine its status or location
Howell officers warned police agencies across the state. … Police pinged the man's phone to get its location.Andrew Ford
c
: to send a usually brief message (such as a text message) or notification to (a person, a person's phone, etc.)
… provides an opportunity to check the time or see who pinged you while you were coming down the mountain …Wired

Examples of ping in a Sentence

Verb Pebbles pinged off the car.
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
Cameras are used to capture images of license plates pinged for a felony, which police use to track down the driver. The Enquirer, 1 Mar. 2024 The university said Monday that the student’s phone was pinged at the New River Valley Mall at 4:26 p.m. on Friday. Daniel S. Levine, Peoplemag, 23 Feb. 2024 Roop's phone pinged at a shopping mall around 2 miles south of his apartment at 4:26 p.m., just over half an hour before he was scheduled to begin the exam at his parent's home in Abingdon, about 100 miles west of the mall. USA TODAY, 20 Feb. 2024 However, the warrant said Vargas’ cell phone pinged off of a tower near the residence later in that afternoon. Jeff A. Chamer, Charlotte Observer, 13 Feb. 2024 His father's vehicle was located near the military installation Tuesday night after pinging the suspect's cellphone, according to a Pennsylvania National Guard spokesperson. Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 2 Feb. 2024 The phone pinged near the Indiantown Gap National Cemetery and again just outside the National Guard base, where police found the car outside, Angela Watson of Pennsylvania's Department of Military and Veterans Affairs, which oversees the National Guard, said Wednesday. Tom Winter, NBC News, 1 Feb. 2024 These regularly ping upward to a smaller number of more powerful servers, which in turn ping upward again, all the way to another small number of powerful servers linked to an array of timekeeping devices like atomic clocks. Clay Risen, New York Times, 26 Jan. 2024 The month’s ordinary soundtrack — whispers gathering, phones pinging, the machine that produces vivid chyrons for breathless television broadcasts whirring to life — might have been muted, but that does not mean there has been nothing to hear. Rory Smith, New York Times, 2 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'ping.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

imitative

First Known Use

Noun

1855, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1855, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of ping was in 1855

Dictionary Entries Near ping

Cite this Entry

“Ping.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/ping. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

ping

noun
ˈpiŋ
1
: a sharp sound like that of a bullet striking
2
ping verb

Geographical Definition

Ping

geographical name

river 360 miles (579 kilometers) long in western Thailand flowing south-southeast to join the Nan River forming the Chao Phraya River

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