thrash

1 of 2

verb

thrashed; thrashing; thrashes

transitive verb

1
a
: to beat soundly with or as if with a stick or whip : flog
b
: to defeat decisively or severely
thrashed the visiting team
2
: to swing, beat, or strike in the manner of a rapidly moving flail
thrashing his arms
3
a
: to go over again and again
thrash the matter over inconclusively
b
: to hammer out : forge
thrash out a plan
4
: to separate the seeds of from the husks and straw by beating : thresh sense 1

intransitive verb

1
: to move or stir about violently : toss about
thrash in bed with a fever
2
: to deal blows or strokes like one using a flail or whip
3

thrash

2 of 2

noun

1
: an act of thrashing
2
: rock music (such as heavy metal or punk rock) that is extremely fast and loud
Choose the Right Synonym for thrash

swing, wave, flourish, brandish, thrash mean to wield or cause to move to and fro or up and down.

swing implies regular or uniform movement.

swing the rope back and forth

wave usually implies smooth or continuous motion.

waving the flag

flourish suggests vigorous, ostentatious, graceful movement.

flourished the winning lottery ticket

brandish implies threatening or menacing motion.

brandishing a knife

thrash suggests vigorous, abrupt, violent movement.

an infant thrashing his arms about

Examples of thrash in a Sentence

Verb He thrashed me with his belt. The team thrashed them last week. Something was thrashing wildly in the water. She thrashed around in her sleep. Noun The shark swam away with a thrash of its tail.
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
Nothing overtly frightening, but all of it was terrible—the tautness of the tape, the businesslike trot of the dogs, the way the crowns of the trees thrashed with the force of the helicopter blades. Fiona McFarlane, The New Yorker, 4 Mar. 2024 Since thrashing second place Girona 4-0 at the Bernabeu on February 10, Carlo Ancelotti's men have failed to score more than one goal in a game with narrow wins over Leipzig in the Champions League and Sevilla domestically. Tom Sanderson, Forbes, 2 Mar. 2024 Eyewitness accounts described Smith’s death as a harrowing experience of dry heaving, thrashing, straining against leather straps, seizures, and terror. Joel B. Zivot, STAT, 26 Feb. 2024 According to witnesses, the inmate who was put to death did not become unconscious as quickly as expected and thrashed on the gurney. Erik Ortiz, NBC News, 9 Feb. 2024 The music video, on the other hand, was less subtle: In it, Timberlake thrashes the home of a Spears lookalike and spies on her in the shower. Alexandra Del Rosario, Los Angeles Times, 15 Dec. 2023 The Rockets were thrashed by the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday night to start the second half of the season, 127-105. Rahat Huq, Forbes, 23 Feb. 2024 But as Stoner ushered the buck toward the rocks, the buck started thrashing around extra hard, clearly disturbed by his situation. Katie Hill, Outdoor Life, 14 Feb. 2024 Another character is hooded on the street, dragged into an alley and stabbed to death, with all of the action in two wide shots; a third is knocked down in one wide shot, then thrashed to death in a low-angle medium. Jason Bailey, New York Times, 22 Oct. 2023
Noun
In September, the beloved thrash metal band will headline Louisville’s Louder Than Life and also perform at Riot Fest in Chicago. Matthew Strauss, Pitchfork, 21 Feb. 2024 Four years after Slayer wrapped up their farewell tour — and two weeks after guitarist Kerry King said a reunion was unlikely — the thrash metal legends will return this fall for a couple of headlining festival gigs. Daniel Kreps, Rolling Stone, 21 Feb. 2024 An offer to serve as a temporary replacement drummer for the esteemed hardcore/thrash band Cro-Mags when the band’s regular drummer Gary Sullivan experienced major health problems has led to Opus being contracted for the entire 2024 Cro-Mags tour. Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 7 Jan. 2024 Advertisement Lengyel was an early member of Mr. Bungle, a thrash metal band formed in 1985 by a trio of high school buddies in the Humboldt County logging and fishing town of Eureka. Hailey Branson-Potts, Los Angeles Times, 5 Jan. 2024 Power Trip reunited in their home state of Texas on Friday night (December 1), stepping in as surprise headliners for a show with the crossover thrash band Fugitive at Mohawk in Austin. Nina Corcoran, Pitchfork, 2 Dec. 2023 And Robert Trujillo rocks that bass like the John Entwistle of thrash. Ed Masley, The Arizona Republic, 10 Sep. 2023 Death metal, the hellish genre that emerged in the mid ’80s as a mutation of the West Coast thrash of Metallica and Slayer, is currently enjoying a prolonged renaissance. Brad Sanders, Chron, 6 Apr. 2023 Fans of thrash metal, folk rock, punk, and hill country blues will be able to find common ground this month in helping to fund support for people with cancer. Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 18 Oct. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'thrash.' 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

Verb

alteration of thresh

First Known Use

Verb

15th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 3

Noun

1840, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of thrash was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near thrash

Cite this Entry

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

Kids Definition

thrash

verb
ˈthrash
1
2
a
: to strike forcefully especially with a long instrument (as a whip) : flog
b
: to defeat decisively or severely
thrashed the visiting team
3
: to move or stir about violently
something was thrashing wildly in the water
4
: to go over again and again
thrash the matter over
thrash out a plan

More from Merriam-Webster on thrash

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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