trounce

verb

ˈtrau̇n(t)s 

trounced; trouncing

transitive verb

: to thrash or punish severely

especially : to defeat decisively

trounced the rival team

Synonyms of trounce

• overcome
• bury
• beat
• annihilate
• rout
• whip
• throw
• upset
• bomb
• smother
• flatten
• thrash
• clobber
• drub
• master
• overwhelm
• surpass
• blow away
• take
• trim

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

That’s where three University of Iowa economists — Robert Forsythe, George Neumann and Forrest Nelson — met for food and beers and kvetching about just how badly the polls had missed the mark on the Michigan Democratic primary the day before, when Jesse Jackson absolutely trounced Michael Dukakis. — Allison Morrow, CNN Money, 21 June 2026

Germany did rout newcomer Curacao 7-1, Qatar was trounced 6-0 by Canada, and Haiti was eliminated after two matches. — Tales Azzoni, Chicago Tribune, 21 June 2026

But in general the US military proved incapable of quickly trouncing a much weaker adversary, and left the citizens and residents of Gulf allies under fire in the meantime. — Tim McDonnell, semafor.com, 16 June 2026

On Sunday in Houston, four-time world champions Germany trounced Curacao 7-1. — Felipe Cardenas, New York Times, 15 June 2026

Word History

Etymology

origin unknown

First Known Use

1868, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for trounce

• bounce
• flounce
• ounce
• pounce
• announce
• denounce
• pronounce
• renounce

Kids Definition

trounce

verb

ˈtrau̇n(t)s 

trounced; trouncing

: to thrash or punish severely

especially : to defeat thoroughly