1
—used to express a sound made by or as if by a gun
2
—used to indicate a sudden or instantaneous occurrence
zapped; zapping; zaps
1
a
: to get rid of, destroy, or kill especially with or as if with sudden force
b
: to hit with or as if with a sudden concentrated application of force or energy
c
: to irradiate especially with microwaves
2
a
: to propel suddenly or speedily
b
: to transport instantaneously
3
: to avoid watching (something, such as a television commercial) by changing channels especially with a remote control or by fast-forwarding
1
: to move with speed or force
2
: to change television channels using a remote control
Examples of zap in a Sentence
Verb
The flowers were zapped by the cold weather.
The aliens in the movie zapped people from spaceships.
She reheated her muffin by zapping it in the microwave for a few seconds.
I zapped through the channels for a while before falling asleep.
We tape the show so we can zap through the commercials.
Recent Examples on the Web
Lauren Puckett-Pope, ELLE, 9 Aug. 2023
Peter Brannen, Big Think, 28 Aug. 2025
When the fated lightning came to destroy the Demon Orb, Ne Zha was ready to be zapped to death.
—Jennifer Zhan, Vulture, 22 Aug. 2025
Jessica M. Goldstein, Vulture, 3 Sep. 2025
The latter has an easy lope made menacing by a cartoon-alien zap answered by other machines that caw like birds.
—Michaelangelo Matos, Rolling Stone, 16 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for zap
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Interjection
Yeah, truly, like passing a ball around and zip zap zopping.
—Lauren Puckett-Pope, ELLE, 9 Aug. 2023
Verb
For all of Earth history, lightning has been zapping the surface, today at the rate of 100 strikes a second.
—Peter Brannen, Big Think, 28 Aug. 2025
When the fated lightning came to destroy the Demon Orb, Ne Zha was ready to be zapped to death.
—Jennifer Zhan, Vulture, 22 Aug. 2025
Noun
Isaac-Slurp uses the magic ball to make the machine go zippity-zap.
—Jessica M. Goldstein, Vulture, 3 Sep. 2025
The latter has an easy lope made menacing by a cartoon-alien zap answered by other machines that caw like birds.
—Michaelangelo Matos, Rolling Stone, 16 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for zap
Cite this Entry
“Zap.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/zap. Accessed 8 Sep. 2025.
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