trounced; trouncing

transitive verb

: to thrash or punish severely
especially : to defeat decisively

Examples of trounce in a Sentence

our candidate trounced her opponent in the election, winning with 76% of the vote
Recent Examples on the Web Models trounced down the runway in exaggerated smiles, and at the turn of the catwalk, pivoted to a straight face, suggesting there’s only a bit of hope left for all of us. Elle.com, ELLE, 10 Sep. 2023 The August 2021 match-up, which saw IMG trounce Bishop Sycamore 58-0 and resulted in a number of significant injuries to Bishop Sycamore players, led to the game becoming a viral spectacle, the team becoming the subject of widespread ridicule, and the unraveling of Johnson's long-running fraud. Megan McCluskey, Time, 24 Aug. 2023 Trump handily won the New Hampshire primary in 2016, and recent polling has shown the former president trouncing other candidates in the state. Grace Segers, The New Republic, 11 Aug. 2023 Newcomer Ronald Reagan trounced him in a landslide. George Skelton, Los Angeles Times, 4 Sep. 2023 And in 2020, President Joe Biden trounced Republican Donald Trump by 29 percentage points in the district, which includes the eastern half of the state. Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 1 Sep. 2023 If the case stays in Fulton County, Ga., the jury will come from a bastion of Democratic politics where Mr. Trump was trounced in 2020. Danny Hakim, New York Times, 28 Aug. 2023 The Timbers got trounced in Houston; the Thorns pulled out a signature, 2-1 win over North Carolina despite being down a player for nearly the entire match; and coach Giovanni Savarese and the Timbers parted ways. oregonlive, 22 Aug. 2023 The Spain campaign Spain trounced Costa Rica 3-0, in its World Cup opener on Friday, a statement victory for a talented team facing uncertainty entering this World Cup. Sean Gregory, Time, 22 July 2023 See More

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

origin unknown

First Known Use

1868, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of trounce was in 1868

Dictionary Entries Near trounce

Cite this Entry

“Trounce.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/trounce. Accessed 27 Sep. 2023.

Kids Definition

trounce

verb
trounced; trouncing
: to thrash or punish severely
especially : to defeat thoroughly

More from Merriam-Webster on trounce

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!