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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bonking
Verb
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During that time, the moon will appear mostly dark, which will give the astronauts a chance to look for flashes of light from rocky objects smacking into the moon or to observe planets and other celestial bodies.—
Evan Bush,
NBC news,
6 Apr. 2026 -
Other incidents over the years have seen fans grab at Nikki Bella or actually smacking Alex Bliss on the backside as Nia Jax was carrying her over her shoulder from a previous segment.—
Matthew Couden,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Shannon scored 29 points in the second half, hitting five of seven 3-point shots.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
9 Apr. 2026
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Dodgers hitting coach Robert Van Scoyoc said Pages has become one of the team’s most regular users of the Trajekt machine – and Skenes is a frequent visitor.—
Bill Plunkett,
Oc Register,
9 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Their show is a high-energy mix of friendly interviews with tech titans, industry gossip, and celebrations of funding rounds and other successes that involve banging a giant gong.—
Shannon Bond,
NPR,
8 Apr. 2026
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Then, on a force play, Contreras slid hard into second, banging into shortstop David Hamilton’s left knee with his cleats and tearing his pants.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
7 Apr. 2026
Verb
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That means going beyond slapping a flag on packaging in November.—
Peter Su,
Rolling Stone,
1 Apr. 2026
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Mirković took a straight line toward Wagler, slapping his hand and then bringing him in for a long hug — two freshmen raised 5,000 miles apart who came together to help the Illini reach their first Final Four since 2005.—
Colleen Kane,
Chicago Tribune,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Bridgewater Police Officer Marc-Stephen Hutchins then arrived and started knocking on the door as well.—
Penny Kmitt,
CBS News,
10 Apr. 2026
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The Stockyards is knocking it out of the park, the Near Southside is growing with hospital and hotel development, and new construction is under way in the West 7th District, Taft said.—
Harrison Mantas,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
9 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Williams allegedly became involved in a physical altercation with the K-9 and multiple officers, punching the dog several times in the head and body, Caruso said.—
Justin Muszynski,
Hartford Courant,
8 Apr. 2026
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Just like anything short of getting back to the conference finals and punching a ticket to The Big Dance will be grounds for termination for the Knicks roster as currently constructed.—
Kristian Winfield,
New York Daily News,
7 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Swinyard said Mortensen allegedly drove away with Paul against her wishes, before the two got into an altercation that included Mortensen grabbing her head and slamming it into the dashboard, then hitting her knee and elbow with his fist.—
Rebecca Cohen,
NBC news,
7 Apr. 2026
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Video shows a car striking a large trash bin before slamming into the building.—
Abby Dodge,
CBS News,
6 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Matt is carrying a stick and whacking flowers.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
31 Mar. 2026
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Tien and Chang plan to be on the ground in Houston and out whacking balls come Monday.—
Dale Robertson,
Houston Chronicle,
29 Mar. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Bonking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bonking. Accessed 11 Apr. 2026.
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