Verb The boat thumped against the side of the pier. thumped the desk with his hand as he delivered his speech Noun The ball landed with a thump. gave her boyfriend a thump against the side of his head whenever he said something obnoxious

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb In addition to plexiglass screens, polling places across the region took measures to promote spacing and hygiene in the face of the ongoing pandemic, offering clean pens or swabs to thump the electronic voting screens. — Marc Ramirez, Dallas News, "Texas voters surpass total ballots cast during 2016 election with 1 day left of early voting," 30 Oct. 2020 The Norwegian will thump his chest and roar words of self-encouragement as he's introduced to the crowd on the start line -- psychological preparation for what lies ahead. — George Ramsay, CNN, "After the season of his life, Karsten Warholm wants to win athletics' 'moon race'," 24 Oct. 2020 Swift ran for 116 yards and two touchdowns on 14 carries and the Lions got their best defensive effort of the season to thump the Jacksonville Jaguars, 34-16, at TIAA Bank Stadium. — Dave Birkett, Detroit Free Press, "How Detroit Lions RB D'Andre Swift got redemption: 'One game means nothing'," 19 Oct. 2020 Their scaly bodies thump against me with an energy that’s ineffable and uplifting. — James Prosek, National Geographic, "If you unbuild it, they will come—the fish, that is," 14 Aug. 2020 Just about all of our residential stucco is the traditional, three-coat stucco that people like to thump their chest over. — Reuben Saltzman, Star Tribune, "Buying a stucco home? Heads up.," 11 Aug. 2020 Sirens and the thumping rotors of maize and blue Eurocopter 155 Survival Flight helicopters signaled the arrival of as many as 25 patients a day until April 8, when the number of Covid inpatients hit a peak of 229. — Elliott Woods, Wired, "In One Hospital, Finding Humanity in an Inhuman Crisis," 19 Apr. 2020 So rather than avoiding his hostile ex Amanda (Freida Pinto), Jack gets stuck alongside her, while Dina is stranded next to Sidney (Tim Key), a thumping bore who is not Scottish but wears a kilt to allow for endless jokes about testicle discomfort. — David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, "'Love Wedding Repeat': Film Review," 10 Apr. 2020 While the bursts of guitars and thumping synths are enough to keep my pulse going, the song's message of pushing through roadblocks and ‘running’ with your dreams always encourages me to finish my route. — Christa Sgobba, SELF, "50 Best Workout Songs We Have on Repeat," 6 Feb. 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Though technically released in December 2019, Kaytranada’s thump-resonant, dance floor radiant, synth-rich flurry of color and beats was the perfect reservoir of music to escape into this year. — Wired Staff, Wired, "The Best Pop Culture That Got Us Through 2020," 16 Dec. 2020 Not long ago, John Wright of Fairbanks heard a thump against a window above his deck. — Ned Rozell, Anchorage Daily News, "Meet the northern shrike, a rare carnivorous songbird," 5 Dec. 2020 The lively rhythms of the street follow the percussive beat of cumbia, the thump of reggaeton, the call to prayer. — New York Times, "The Epicenter," 3 Dec. 2020 What did not sound good to me was the thump of Tom’s broomstick under my bed at 5 the next morning. — Norman Strung, Field & Stream, "F&S Classics: Tommy’s Fiddle," 3 Dec. 2020 The Ghost is also quiet inside but the occasional bump and thump still gets through. — Peter Valdes-dapena, CNN, "Rolls-Royce's new Ghost: Still plenty posh, but more laid back," 1 Dec. 2020 An 81-year-old former Marine from suburban Chicago used his grandfather's antique Irish walking stick to chase off three burglars and deliver one a thump in the head for his trouble. — Fox News, "Illinois man, 81, uses antique walking stick to beat thieves," 21 Nov. 2020 McIlroy played a wild round while watching Johnson thump line drives down the middle of the fairway. — Star Tribune, "Diverse, crowded Masters leaderboard makes for an exciting weekend at Augusta," 13 Nov. 2020 The tailgate of the truck came down with a thump and two English setters stared back at us with equal calm and patience. — Outdoor Life, "Upland Bird Hunting Is for Skaters, Punk-Rock Kids, and Everyone Else," 11 Nov. 2020

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'thump.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.