Thesaurus results for BONKING

bonking

verb

present participle of bonk

as in smacking

to deliver a blow to (someone or something) usually in a strong vigorous manner an overhead branch suddenly fell and bonked him on the head

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of bonking Seffrin and his team note that their study suggests that men might be able to thwart bonking by running slower in the first half of a marathon and getting continually faster as the race progresses, a pacing strategy known as negative splitting. — Claire Maldarelli, Scientific American, 2 July 2026 Those misses rarely occurred in season two, but three episodes into this season, the bat is flying wildly around the stadium, bonking people in the head in a freak mass-casualty bat-event. — Rebecca Alter, Vulture, 22 June 2026 Watch the baby birds bonking at the video at the top of the story. — Michelle Del Rey, USA Today, 8 Apr. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for bonking

Verb

Carrington was ejected from the game in the first half after smacking Cunningham across the face during Cunningham's layup attempt.

— Jackson Thompson OutKick, FOXNews.com, 9 Aug. 2026
Catcher Daniel Susac followed up Wednesday’s two-home-run game by smacking a two-run shot, and the Giants bullpen didn’t break down while protecting a 4-1 victory.

— Andrew Baggarly, New York Times, 31 July 2026

Definition of smacking

Verb

Followin much teasing, Oasis will embark on an additional 2027 tour hitting stops once again in the United Kingdom and United States, but also Europe, which was omitted during last year’s trot.

— Jaeden Pinder, Rolling Stone, 28 Sep. 2026
The film will open in select theaters on October 16 before hitting Netflix on December 2.

— Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 28 Sep. 2026

Definition of hitting

Verb

Officers were responding to a house sitter who discovered the damage while checking on loud banging in the home’s rear, police said.

— Dennis Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 23 Sep. 2026
In 2015, Ben Hiscox died after falling backwards and banging his head on the clubhouse wall during an amateur game at Stoke Gifford, near Bristol.

— Stuart James, New York Times, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of banging

Verb

Iran has tried to push world energy prices higher with attacks on the region's oil shipping routes; the United States, in turn, has aimed to wreck Iran's economy by blockading its ports since June and slapping it with increasingly tough sanctions.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 1 Oct. 2026
The officers walked over to the man and told him to place his hands behind his back, slapping him in cuffs in front of customers and coworkers.

— Kate Payne, Miami Herald, 30 Sep. 2026

Definition of slapping

Verb

For those who missed it, Stephens hit a sliding Moore in the helmet during the second quarter, knocking Moore out of the game and sending the star quarterback to the hospital down the street on a stretcher.

— Zach Dean OutKick, FOXNews.com, 30 Sep. 2026
To get the coach's side of the story, CBS News Detroit tried calling her, reaching out to her on social media, knocking on her door and writing her a letter.

— Julia Avant, CBS News, 29 Sep. 2026

Definition of knocking

Verb

Bella chews him out for punching Angus in the face right before Angus’s big presentation, which Johnny knew about because they were supposed to throw a return supper for him, a dinner Johnny was supposed to cook.

— Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 2 Oct. 2026
Castro whips her head around and follows him, punching him in the back.

— Iris Kwok, Los Angeles Times, 26 Sep. 2026

Definition of punching

Verb

Donalds’ speech ran the gamut of Republican campaign points, from slamming COVID lockdowns to border crossings.

— Claire Heddles, Miami Herald, 1 Oct. 2026
On the same day, HHS senior adviser Calley Means doubled down on the claim, posting on X that Kennedy is doing so well that Democratic operatives are slamming the FDA for doing its job by conducting food recalls.

— Stephanie Armour, CBS News, 28 Sep. 2026

Definition of slamming

Verb

There are frightening stories of swordfish charging boats, and even spearing their transoms and whacking propellers.

— Bob McNally, Outdoor Life, 26 Aug. 2026
Yes, there were moments of humor, such as getting magic potions around the campfire at the end of each stage by whacking helpless little elves, but most of it was played straight, to great effect.

— Ollie Barder, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of whacking

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“Bonking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bonking. Accessed 4 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of bonking

verb

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