as in defeat
failure to win a contest
took a terrible drubbing in last night's basketball game
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in pounding
to strike repeatedly
a crowd was drubbing the purse snatcher when the police arrived on the scene
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in whipping
to defeat by a large margin
we drubbed our traditional football rivals so badly that it was basically no contest
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of drubbing
Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Sep. 2025
Pondo responded to a Week 1 loss at Palmer Ridge with a 40-0 drubbing of Rampart that featured 390 total yards, nine tackles for a loss and three sacks.
—Matt Schubert, Denver Post, 10 Sep. 2025
This comes just days after Tagovailoa threw two interceptions and fumbled the ball en route to the Indianapolis Colts’ drubbing of the Dolphins.
—C. Isaiah Smalls Ii, Miami Herald, 10 Sep. 2025
The Jayhawks converted two fourth-down chances out of three in their 31-7 drubbing of Fresno State.
—Shreyas Laddha, Kansas City Star, 27 Aug. 2025
Helpfully, Tuesday’s Carabao Cup game at Sheffield Wednesday gives the manager and players a swift chance to reset and draw a line under their drubbing.
—Beren Cross, New York Times, 24 Aug. 2025
The New York Yankees blasted nine home runs in yesterday’s 13-3 drubbing of the Tampa Bay Rays, and Cody Bellinger led the assault.
—Daniel R. Epstein, Forbes.com, 20 Aug. 2025
After Sunday’s 38-0 drubbing of the Buffalo Bills, the Bears had Monday off.
—Chicago Tribune, 20 Aug. 2025
Noun
More After the Yankees' 11-1 drubbing at the hands of Detroit, their second 10-run loss in as many nights, manager Aaron Boone attempted to paint a sunny picture of a pitcher in Doval who is showing potential while still adjusting to his new surroundings.
—Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Sep. 2025
Pondo responded to a Week 1 loss at Palmer Ridge with a 40-0 drubbing of Rampart that featured 390 total yards, nine tackles for a loss and three sacks.
—Matt Schubert, Denver Post, 10 Sep. 2025
This comes just days after Tagovailoa threw two interceptions and fumbled the ball en route to the Indianapolis Colts’ drubbing of the Dolphins.
—C. Isaiah Smalls Ii, Miami Herald, 10 Sep. 2025
The Jayhawks converted two fourth-down chances out of three in their 31-7 drubbing of Fresno State.
—Shreyas Laddha, Kansas City Star, 27 Aug. 2025
Helpfully, Tuesday’s Carabao Cup game at Sheffield Wednesday gives the manager and players a swift chance to reset and draw a line under their drubbing.
—Beren Cross, New York Times, 24 Aug. 2025
The New York Yankees blasted nine home runs in yesterday’s 13-3 drubbing of the Tampa Bay Rays, and Cody Bellinger led the assault.
—Daniel R. Epstein, Forbes.com, 20 Aug. 2025
After Sunday’s 38-0 drubbing of the Buffalo Bills, the Bears had Monday off.
—Chicago Tribune, 20 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for drubbing
Noun
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Biden and, by extension, Harris will be remembered even and perhaps especially by Democrats as symbolizing disappointment and defeat.—
W. James Antle III,
The Washington Examiner,
12 Sep. 2025
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Austin Corbett used stronger terms to describe the mood following the 26-10 defeat.—
Joseph Person,
New York Times,
11 Sep. 2025
Verb
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One end of the spectrum are stress fracture, which are very small, often described as hairline fractures that result from repetitive force and pounding to the bone over time.—
Bruce Y. Lee,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
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It’s typed with such pounding despair and fury that certain letters of the alphabet actually tear through the paper (this was an old, manual typewriter).—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
11 Sep. 2025
Verb
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Boaters were the last to be warned to watch the sky as a line of wind-whipping storms pushed out to sea.—
Joe Dwinell,
Boston Herald,
7 Sep. 2025
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Golden State usually opens games whipping the ball around and making teams uncomfortable with its aggressive style of defense.—
Nathan Canilao,
Mercury News,
5 Sep. 2025
Noun
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The 49ers’ defensive coordinator, Nate Faanes, found the right lineup combinations in Saturday night’s loss, even without starting defensive linemen Jaylon Johnson and DJ Burgess, the latter being out for the season with an upper-body injury.—
Hunter Bailey,
Charlotte Observer,
10 Sep. 2025
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Florida Democrats, weakened by years of losses and fractured messaging, continue to face a shrinking electorate.—
Samantha-Jo Roth,
The Washington Examiner,
10 Sep. 2025
Verb
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That could look like gliding your fingers down them, kissing, licking, or gently biting those areas.—
Essence,
Essence,
11 Sep. 2025
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In the video, the sound of Bambi's stomping, licking, meowing and general everyday life has delighted viewers.—
Alice Gibbs,
MSNBC Newsweek,
9 Sep. 2025
Verb
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For the first time, Israel launched an airstrike in Qatar, bombing a building in Doha that houses Hamas political leadership.—
Greg Dixon,
NPR,
9 Sep. 2025
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In this season of Platonic, Luke Macfarlane's character Charlie has a mental breakdown after bombing his dream opportunity to compete on Jeopardy!—
Dory Jackson,
People.com,
27 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Genser argued that those injuries did not contribute to her death and that there was no evidence of a beating taking place in the condo.—
City News Service,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
12 Sep. 2025
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Detainees have alleged torture and beatings inside CECOT since their release.—
Nick Penzenstadler,
USA Today,
9 Sep. 2025
Verb
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But when this lashing out becomes regular, the partner on the receiving end will start to expect their character to be attacked just as regularly.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
7 Sep. 2025
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The company destroyed a piece of lashing wire that investigators believe slapped an Xcel electrical conductor and caused arcing that led to the fire, said Matthew Delinko with Bauman, Lowe, Witt & Maxwell, a law firm representing insurance companies.—
Noelle Phillips,
Denver Post,
21 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Drubbing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/drubbing. Accessed 16 Sep. 2025.
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