Thesaurus results for FLAGELLATING

flagellating

verb

present participle of flagellate

as in whipping

to strike repeatedly with something long and thin or flexible some medieval monks believed it was necessary to flagellate themselves in order to keep their desires in check

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 flagellating Some go further, flagellating themselves or using a sword to strike their forehead to draw blood. — Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 22 June 2026 His only way of finding any kind of life for himself is to embrace evil, to stop running away from it, to try to stop morally flagellating himself. — Charlotte Observer, 25 Feb. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for flagellating

Verb

Hanoi’s famous egg coffee—made by whipping egg yolks with sugar and condensed milk into a rich, velvety foam—was born during a time when fresh milk was scarce.

— Susmita Baral, Travel + Leisure, 9 July 2026
Onstage, Shakira unleashed her inner rock star during the song, working the stage and the mic stand in a purple corset and matching fringe pants and whipping her lengthy curls like a weapon.

— Melissa Ruggieri, USA Today, 7 July 2026

Definition of whipping

Verb

Juro is collecting worthy Jedi to help repopulate the Jedi Order, but evil Sith mercenaries are hiding within his candidates’ ranks.

— Jeff Spry, Space.com, 13 July 2026
Most schemes involved hiding behind computer screens, renting nonexistent apartments or exploiting a grandparent’s love by asking for a grandchild’s fake bail.

— Ari Maas, New York Daily News, 11 July 2026

Definition of hiding

Verb

Then Ferrari’s team reboots the underlying technology—centralizing server costs, cleaning up sprawling codebases—while slashing costs.

— Chris Dobstaff, Forbes.com, 2 July 2026
Higgins said her solution is to speed up permitting by slashing red tape — both for these types of large, city projects and for home and business owners trying to install resilient upgrades.

— Alex Harris, Miami Herald, 1 July 2026

Definition of slashing

Verb

Under pressure, Fiji conceded 12 penalties — nine by halftime — and a red card to scrumhalf Simione Kuruvoli for lashing out with his boot into the stomach of Ellis Genge.

— ABC News, ABC News, 11 July 2026
In October 2020, Burnham happened to be holding a news conference on live TV, when an aide passed him a phone with news of another lockdown — and the mayor reacted angrily, lashing out at the central government.

— Lauren Frayer, NPR, 9 July 2026

Definition of lashing

Verb

By flicking their tongues, snakes can detect the scent trails left by potential prey, such as rodents or birds, and accurately track and capture them even in the dark or in complex environments.

— Britannica Editors, Encyclopedia Britannica, 6 July 2026
The Argentine legend unlocked the Cape Verde defense in the 29th minute, controlling a long diagonal pass with one touch in the box and promptly flicking it over the head of a charging Vozinha.

— Jacob Lev, CNN Money, 3 July 2026

Definition of flicking

Verb

So, that is one gig at a completely unnecessary addition to the sports calendar, created by corporate interests for the sole intention of flogging products to people who do not really like sport… and another at the Enhanced Games.

— Matt Slater, New York Times, 23 May 2026
In an even more meta moment, Amazon interrupted its own Upfront with actual ads with Summer House star Paige DeSorbo flogging certain items to an increasingly frustrated audience.

— Peter White, Deadline, 11 May 2026

Definition of flogging

Verb

There was briefly some concern earlier this year that Chestnut wouldn’t be able to participate in the 2026 competition after he was arrested for allegedly slapping a man in an Indiana bar.

— Kyla Guilfoil, NBC news, 5 July 2026
Haaland’s winning goal came after another bout of yanking and pulling; the striker tried to free himself by slapping the defender’s arm away, eventually just carrying on regardless.

— Jack Lang, New York Times, 5 July 2026

Definition of slapping

Browse Nearby Words

flagellates

flagellating

flagged

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Flagellating.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/flagellating. Accessed 17 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of flagellating

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

obdurate

Popular in Grammar & Usage

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

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

Popular in Wordplay

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 17

Popular

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

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

Games & Quizzes