as in taps
to strike or cause to strike lightly and usually rhythmically
absentmindedly drumming his fingers on the table
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of drums
Elyssa Kaufman, CBS News, 17 Feb. 2026
Stadia builds its sound with the conventional guitars, drums and bass but also harp and violin.
—Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 15 Feb. 2026
Fingers skitter up and down the strings of a double bass, hands massage the piano keys, brushes gently scratch at the drums.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 13 Feb. 2026
Composer and sound designer Christopher Kriz’s transitional music amplifies Hedda’s restless internal state with electric guitar and drums backed by a relentless, clock-like beat.
—Emily McClanathan, Chicago Tribune, 11 Feb. 2026
One would still occasionally see a Black Pentecostal church parade on a Sunday afternoon — white-turbaned women, drums and a horn section playing loud gospel music.
—Naomi Jackson, Curbed, 11 Feb. 2026
In addition to drums, Ranken played the harmonica and provided vocals for the group.
—Tracy Brown, Los Angeles Times, 11 Feb. 2026
Mai sings in a fake-aloof tone about not wanting to get her hopes up, but the beat’s rickety construction—808s, snaps, live drums, and an urgently ticking clock—undermines her facade.
—H.d. Angel, Pitchfork, 9 Feb. 2026
Meanwhile, buskers entertain people in line playing drums with buckets.
—Jakob Rodgers, Mercury News, 8 Feb. 2026
Randy McMullen, Mercury News, 8 Jan. 2026
Instead of another room with a priest and young woman growling on the bed, the exorcisms in The Wailing are accompanied by chanting crowds, firepits, and drums beating as a great spectacle is made of the ritual.
—Michael Lee Simpson, Entertainment Weekly, 29 Oct. 2025
The video cuts to Camila, who reads the report outloud as Matthew drums on the bongo and offers his commentary on the report.
—Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 24 Oct. 2025
Some of the pressure on federal lawmakers is also shifting to state-level leaders to fill the gaps as the shutdown drums on.
—Claire Heddles, Miami Herald, 24 Oct. 2025
These cues told the robot which drums to strike and when.
—Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 8 Aug. 2025
Noun
Your memory will be a ray of light piercing the darkness that surrounds us right now as authoritarian drums beat loudly and threaten the civil rights of Americans.
—Elyssa Kaufman, CBS News, 17 Feb. 2026
Stadia builds its sound with the conventional guitars, drums and bass but also harp and violin.
—Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 15 Feb. 2026
Fingers skitter up and down the strings of a double bass, hands massage the piano keys, brushes gently scratch at the drums.
—David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 13 Feb. 2026
Composer and sound designer Christopher Kriz’s transitional music amplifies Hedda’s restless internal state with electric guitar and drums backed by a relentless, clock-like beat.
—Emily McClanathan, Chicago Tribune, 11 Feb. 2026
One would still occasionally see a Black Pentecostal church parade on a Sunday afternoon — white-turbaned women, drums and a horn section playing loud gospel music.
—Naomi Jackson, Curbed, 11 Feb. 2026
In addition to drums, Ranken played the harmonica and provided vocals for the group.
—Tracy Brown, Los Angeles Times, 11 Feb. 2026
Mai sings in a fake-aloof tone about not wanting to get her hopes up, but the beat’s rickety construction—808s, snaps, live drums, and an urgently ticking clock—undermines her facade.
—H.d. Angel, Pitchfork, 9 Feb. 2026
Meanwhile, buskers entertain people in line playing drums with buckets.
—Jakob Rodgers, Mercury News, 8 Feb. 2026
Verb
Krieger and Densmore, the two surviving members of The Doors, are the backbone of the video, revisiting the signature guitar and drums parts more than a half-century after they were originally laid to wax.
—Randy McMullen, Mercury News, 8 Jan. 2026
Instead of another room with a priest and young woman growling on the bed, the exorcisms in The Wailing are accompanied by chanting crowds, firepits, and drums beating as a great spectacle is made of the ritual.
—Michael Lee Simpson, Entertainment Weekly, 29 Oct. 2025
The video cuts to Camila, who reads the report outloud as Matthew drums on the bongo and offers his commentary on the report.
—Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 24 Oct. 2025
Some of the pressure on federal lawmakers is also shifting to state-level leaders to fill the gaps as the shutdown drums on.
—Claire Heddles, Miami Herald, 24 Oct. 2025
These cues told the robot which drums to strike and when.
—Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 8 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for drums
Noun
-
The narrow waterway, just 21 miles wide, serves as a pinch point for 20 million barrels of crude every day, about one-fifth of global production.—
David Goldman,
CNN Money,
20 Feb. 2026
-
Nearly 5 million barrels of oil arrived in China via the Strait of Hormuz each day in 2024, the EIA said, while about 2 million barrels of such oil ended up in India on a daily basis.—
Max Zahn,
ABC News,
19 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The show taps into the true crime obsession that’s dominated the last decade, and the audience is overwhelmingly women.—
Kennedy French,
Variety,
18 Feb. 2026
-
Launched in 2019, the festival also taps into the ecological challenges facing the Mediterranean port city of Gabès in Southern Tunisia, linked to an aging chemical factory producing phosphate fertilizers, as a hub for thinking about a different future for the city and its local population.—
Melanie Goodfellow,
Deadline,
17 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
For quick, single-serve portions, muffin tins or silicone cupcake molds work well.—
Alexandra Emanuelli,
Southern Living,
12 Feb. 2026
-
As my recycling bin fills with tins, my optimism rises, too.—
Hannah Coates,
Vogue,
10 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Drums.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/drums. Accessed 24 Feb. 2026.
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