as in hammering
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1
as in shuffling
to move heavily or clumsily
pounding down the road as fast as he could run
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in banging
to deliver a blow to (someone or something) usually in a strong vigorous manner
pounding nails into boards all day long
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in licking
to strike repeatedly
during the storm the waves furiously pounded the beach
Synonyms & Similar Words
4
as in drawing
to shape with a hammer
pounding out a depression in the metal
Synonyms & Similar Words
5
as in grinding
to reduce to fine particles
the tablet may be pounded and mixed in with the animal's food
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of pounding
John Ballato, The Conversation, 24 Mar. 2026
All around the Tivoli quarries, the air is heavy with the stench of sulfur and the constant pounding, clinking and cracking of giant jackhammers blasting ancient rock into pieces.
—ABC News, 19 Feb. 2026
This section of shoreline is lined with cliffs, below which are sea caves, formed over centuries by the relentless pounding of Lake Superior waves.
—Stephanie Pearson, Outside, 19 Feb. 2026
The memories remained from crawling across the balcony, the pounding on the chamber doors, the screams echoing through the rotunda.
—Norma Torres, Oc Register, 6 Jan. 2026
In that room, Cristobal didn’t come down hard on his staff, no yelling or pounding of the table.
—Chris Vannini, New York Times, 1 Jan. 2026
Had the pounding on his front door happened just a little later in the afternoon, Eads would most likely have returned home to learn of a tragedy.
—Paul Sisson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 Dec. 2025
The pounding ensued even more with a touchdown from senior halfback Ibrahim Kaba and a bomb caught by Ramar Thomas to close out the game.
—Patrick Plunkett, Boston Herald, 27 Nov. 2025
There was a ringing in his ears, the pounding of blood as his body fought to stay upright.
—Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 26 Sep. 2025
Pamela Colloff, ProPublica, 24 Mar. 2026
Florida began its national title defense with the second-largest victory margin in NCAA Tournament history, pounding Prairie View A&M 114-55 on Friday night.
—ABC News, 21 Mar. 2026
The robot was captured on video at the Haidilao location approaching a table before pounding on it, then knocking over utensils and food in front of customers.
—Isabel Yip, NBC news, 19 Mar. 2026
Not just clapping, but pounding his fists against his chest.
—Los Angeles Times, 18 Mar. 2026
The team became the spectacle of Havana, with Maduro’s Gran Stadium filling with the sound of pounding drums and a conga line snaking through the crowd, as baseball felt more like a festival than a game.
—Tyler Carmona, Miami Herald, 11 Mar. 2026
Learn About Local Culture Not all of Whistler’s activities are meant to be heart-pounding and adrenaline-inducing.
—Lydia Mansel, Travel + Leisure, 10 Mar. 2026
Using traditional Ukrainian folklore songs, voiceover plus pounding music, the stakes these young people confront become clearly apparent.
—Murtada Elfadl, Variety, 10 Mar. 2026
Everything around him pounding in its pulse, the song of the world thronging in all its discord.
—Literary Hub, 9 Mar. 2026
Noun
However, while chemically the same, beach sand is made up of tiny crystals of quartz that have been pulverized by geological weathering and the pounding of ocean waves.
—John Ballato, The Conversation, 24 Mar. 2026
All around the Tivoli quarries, the air is heavy with the stench of sulfur and the constant pounding, clinking and cracking of giant jackhammers blasting ancient rock into pieces.
—ABC News, 19 Feb. 2026
This section of shoreline is lined with cliffs, below which are sea caves, formed over centuries by the relentless pounding of Lake Superior waves.
—Stephanie Pearson, Outside, 19 Feb. 2026
The memories remained from crawling across the balcony, the pounding on the chamber doors, the screams echoing through the rotunda.
—Norma Torres, Oc Register, 6 Jan. 2026
In that room, Cristobal didn’t come down hard on his staff, no yelling or pounding of the table.
—Chris Vannini, New York Times, 1 Jan. 2026
Had the pounding on his front door happened just a little later in the afternoon, Eads would most likely have returned home to learn of a tragedy.
—Paul Sisson, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 Dec. 2025
The pounding ensued even more with a touchdown from senior halfback Ibrahim Kaba and a bomb caught by Ramar Thomas to close out the game.
—Patrick Plunkett, Boston Herald, 27 Nov. 2025
There was a ringing in his ears, the pounding of blood as his body fought to stay upright.
—Carly Tagen-Dye, PEOPLE, 26 Sep. 2025
Verb
The same neighbor also saw him, on another occasion, pounding on Wilkens’ back door with what looked like a metal pipe.
—Pamela Colloff, ProPublica, 24 Mar. 2026
Florida began its national title defense with the second-largest victory margin in NCAA Tournament history, pounding Prairie View A&M 114-55 on Friday night.
—ABC News, 21 Mar. 2026
The robot was captured on video at the Haidilao location approaching a table before pounding on it, then knocking over utensils and food in front of customers.
—Isabel Yip, NBC news, 19 Mar. 2026
Not just clapping, but pounding his fists against his chest.
—Los Angeles Times, 18 Mar. 2026
The team became the spectacle of Havana, with Maduro’s Gran Stadium filling with the sound of pounding drums and a conga line snaking through the crowd, as baseball felt more like a festival than a game.
—Tyler Carmona, Miami Herald, 11 Mar. 2026
Learn About Local Culture Not all of Whistler’s activities are meant to be heart-pounding and adrenaline-inducing.
—Lydia Mansel, Travel + Leisure, 10 Mar. 2026
Using traditional Ukrainian folklore songs, voiceover plus pounding music, the stakes these young people confront become clearly apparent.
—Murtada Elfadl, Variety, 10 Mar. 2026
Everything around him pounding in its pulse, the song of the world thronging in all its discord.
—Literary Hub, 9 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pounding
Noun
-
Ronnie Moyers heard the bird hammering in the woods one morning in late February, several weeks before the species usually shows up in Virginia’s western highlands.—
Sarah Kaplan,
Washington Post,
23 Mar. 2026
-
But the midfielder may get the chance to assist his team’s daunting assignment in overhauling their first-leg 6-1 hammering by Bayern in Munich.—
Greg O'Keeffe,
New York Times,
16 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
These chips spend most of their energy shuffling data between a memory unit and a processor.—
Mrigakshi Dixit,
Interesting Engineering,
20 Mar. 2026
-
So what better way to cap all that off than closing out the Oscars — even if the clip played while the audience was shuffling out of the theater and calling their Ubers.—
Tom Smyth,
Vulture,
16 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
People fed up with rolling blackouts have staged sporadic protests in recent days, banging pots and shouting slogans against the government, rare demonstrations in a country known for repressing dissent.—
Kate Linthicum,
Los Angeles Times,
22 Mar. 2026
-
Late Thursday night into early Friday morning, residents in several neighborhoods in Havana took to the streets, banging pots and pans and, in some cases, lighting bonfires to block major roads in the capital — a sign of escalating frustration.—
Ivan Taylor,
CBS News,
21 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The spotless streets are polished nightly by the feet of families licking ice cream.—
Tribune News Service,
Baltimore Sun,
10 Mar. 2026
-
On April 30, 2025, the dog was reportedly licking its tail and lethargic.—
Staff Report,
Hartford Courant,
27 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The concept exploded on social media, drawing attention from well beyond the baseball world.—
Ryan Brennan,
Kansas City Star,
26 Mar. 2026
-
The Nets’ Ben Saraf tied the game at 106 with a driving dunk with 46 seconds remaining, then De’Anthony Melton gave the Warriors a one-point lead after drawing a foul with 24 seconds on the clock.—
Joseph Dycus,
Mercury News,
26 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Each year, as the weather improves, Russia has moved its grinding war of attrition up a gear.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
24 Mar. 2026
-
The war then settled into a grinding pace, with Russia slowly regaining the upper hand.—
Olivier Kempf,
Harpers Magazine,
24 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
But because this is a derby, we’re supposed to believe this latest thrashing is a statement.—
Megan Feringa,
New York Times,
30 Mar. 2026
-
Carrington, who converted a program-record nine 3-pointers in a 90-73 thrashing at Washington on Saturday, was 4 of 8 behind the arc, and sophomore power forward Austin Rapp as 3 of 6.—
Edward Lee,
Baltimore Sun,
4 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Expect to see crunching tackles, stomping recovery runs and heroic blocks from a 22-year-old centre-back who will be a leader for his country at their first World Cup.—
The Athletic Staff,
New York Times,
3 Mar. 2026
-
So, let’s circle back to the original question on stomping.—
Adam Cohen,
Oklahoman,
3 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Pounding.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pounding. Accessed 31 Mar. 2026.
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