as in thump
a hard strike with a part of the body or an instrument
he got a biff in the noggin as his reward for trying to intervene in the fight
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
as in to smack
to deliver a blow to (someone or something) usually in a strong vigorous manner
the elderly woman swung her purse and biffed the mugger upside the head
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of biff
Mike Meehall Wood, Forbes, 25 May 2021
Here are the best biffs: Between now and Saturday night, each of the 25 finalist robots will get one chance to run through the gauntlet.
—Eric Limer, Popular Mechanics, 5 June 2015
Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 9 Oct. 2025
Noun
Nobody loves the old school biff more than me.
—Mike Meehall Wood, Forbes, 25 May 2021
Here are the best biffs: Between now and Saturday night, each of the 25 finalist robots will get one chance to run through the gauntlet.
—Eric Limer, Popular Mechanics, 5 June 2015
Verb
The Dodgers have by no means biffed this series.
—Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 9 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for biff
Noun
-
Moments later, a bass thump sounded in the distance.—
Nabih Bulos,
Los Angeles Times,
27 Mar. 2026
-
The experimental jet, part of NASA’s Quesst mission, is designed to fly faster than the speed of sound while producing only a soft sonic thump instead of a disruptive boom.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
21 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
But that came with a whole different kind of pressure, one that didn’t feed into Hurley’s psyche as the chronic Dom Quixote in search of another windmill to smack around.—
Dana O’Neil,
CNN Money,
6 Apr. 2026
-
During that time, the moon will appear mostly dark, which will give the astronauts a chance to observe the sun’s corona and look for flashes of light from rocky objects smacking into the moon.—
Denise Chow,
NBC news,
6 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Another day, as Mom loads the children into the car, Jeremy tosses a basketball against the house, again and again, his passive aggression registering through the ball’s unyielding thuds and his own frozen gaze.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
12 Apr. 2026
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The call, which the filing says was made within two minutes of the thuds, was to an employee of the company that owned the development where Okland was hosting the open house.—
Karen Cortes,
NBC news,
9 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
The Devil Wears Prada 2 is expected to hit theaters on May 1.—
Joyann Jeffrey,
PEOPLE,
11 Apr. 2026
-
But Edwards hit a 3-pointer a few seconds later to push the lead to 135-128 and send the home fans streaming toward the exits.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
11 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The development marks a blow to Washington’s support for Orban’s reelection and comes after Magyar’s Tisza party was viewed as the favorite to win in the April 12 election, holding a 10-point lead over the ruling Fidesz party, according to Politico’s polling analysis.—
Emily Hallas,
The Washington Examiner,
12 Apr. 2026
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Freiburg and Switzerland midfielder Johan Manzambi received a blow to his knee late in the game and needed support to walk off the field afterward.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
12 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
In 2024, President Biden slapped China with 100 percent tariffs on its electric vehicles, or EVs.—
Seth Doane,
CBS News,
12 Apr. 2026
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The extra base mattered when Ramos, 2-for-12 in the Philadelphia series and the first game against the Orioles, slapped a sinker to bring home Ramos.—
Jerry McDonald,
Mercury News,
12 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Like the best dark comedies, its emotional gut-punch (in this case, near the end) isn't sentimental but happens organically, catching you by surprise.—
Debby Wolfinsohn,
Entertainment Weekly,
13 Apr. 2026
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In Beast, every punch thrown carries consequences beyond the scoreboard.—
Sean Sennett,
HollywoodReporter,
13 Apr. 2026
Verb
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With the rebound lying in the goal mouth, Malkin was on the spot to bang it home.—
Josh Yohe,
New York Times,
10 Apr. 2026
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Oregon State, Washington State, New Mexico State, San Jose State and others have expressed interest for the forward who can bang inside, run the floor and hit the mid-range jumper.—
Joe Davidson,
Sacbee.com,
9 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Biff.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/biff. Accessed 14 Apr. 2026.
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