bung up

verb

Definition of bung upnext
as in to lick
to strike repeatedly he's a bit of a mess, but he says he bunged up the other guy in the fight even worse

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

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 bung up Yeah, around Hampstead, driving people crazy with the whistle until it was bunged up and stopped by the sound department. — Lily Ford, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bung up
  1. lick
  2. pound
  3. hide
  4. lash
  5. punch out
  6. beat
  7. batter
  8. whip
Verb
  • The Sox move on to Cleveland while the Cubs come home to lick their wounds.
    — Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 1 Oct. 2026
  • The Bombers beat the Red Sox 9-2 in Game 2 after winning the series opening game 9-0, sending New England’s hardball heroes home to lick their wounds until next spring.
    — Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of lick
Verb
  • Guadagnino has always been skilled in his choice of music (Sufjan Stevens’ alt-pop in Call Me by Your Name, Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross’ pounding EDM in Challengers).
    — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 6 Oct. 2026
  • Still The Hairy Ape is, in one sense, a long, furious solo — a man pounding his head against a piano while accompanied by the orchestra — and Beavers ably carries its weight through to the finale.
    — Sara Holdren, Vulture, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of pound
Verb
  • The Trask twins have grown up with the lie that their mother died, and while Cal hides his wounds from that absence, Aron doesn’t.
    — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 1 Oct. 2026
  • Interior designers and professional organizers say most kitchens hide usable square footage in plain sight, trapped behind clutter, bad habits and bulky gear that could be stored smarter or edited out entirely.
    — Lauren Jarvis-Gibson, Kansas City Star, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of hide
Verb
  • An intruder pressed a knife to Beatty's neck, wrapped her face in tape, lashed her to a bed and assaulted her for hours.
    — Tim Stelloh, NBC news, 2 Oct. 2026
  • The clearest moment came when one of the largest open models in the world ran at full precision on one of our servers, while the dominant platform needed two lashed together for the same job.
    — Piotr Tomasik, Forbes.com, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of lash
Verb
  • Cobie Durant sees an interception bounce off his chest, and Donovan Ezeiruaku punches out a fumble that is recovered by New York.
    — Jim Barnes, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 Sep. 2026
  • Using cutter and working with a few slices stacked together at a time, punch out enough rounds to fill bottom of pan.
    — Alexia Duchêne, Bon Appetit Magazine, 3 Sep. 2026
Definition of punch out
Verb
  • Built along a verdant slope edging Bodrum’s Paradise Bay, this contemporary property offers hard-to-beat vistas.
    — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 6 Oct. 2026
  • Hastert became a congressional candidate in 1986 and beat the Democrat with 52% of the vote, his smallest margin of victory in a congressional race.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 6 Oct. 2026
Definition of beat
Verb
  • The indirect talks come as the conflict, which is entering its eighth month, has caused global economic damage and badly battered Iran.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 29 Sep. 2026
  • The slow-moving nor’easter battered the Northeast coastline with heavy rain, strong winds and dangerous surf, flooding low-lying communities from New Jersey to New England.
    — Leah Willingham, Los Angeles Times, 29 Sep. 2026
Definition of batter
Verb
  • In whipping rain and wind in New Jersey, the New York Giants held on for a 12-7 win in their first game since quarterback Jaxson Dart suffered a season-ending knee injury.
    — Andrew Greif, NBC news, 28 Sep. 2026
  • Castro whips her head around and follows him, punching him in the back.
    — Iris Kwok, Los Angeles Times, 26 Sep. 2026
Definition of whip

Browse Nearby Words

bungs up
bung up
bunk
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Bung up.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bung%20up. Accessed 6 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of regimen

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
name tags
Words Named After People Quiz Find out who’s behind "leotard," "morphine," an...
See All