1
as in slaps
to deliver a blow to (someone or something) usually in a strong vigorous manner
after the man had punched the bartender for eighty-sixing him, bouncers stepped in and restrained him until the police could arrive
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in drills
to make a hole or series of holes in
punch a ticket
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in blows
a hard strike with a part of the body or an instrument
the poor palooka wasn't able to land a single punch on his opponent
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in punctures
a mark or small hole made by a pointed instrument
old computers used to get information by reading the punches on a series of cards
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of punches
Marie Poteriaieva, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025
One of the officers then punches him three times, according to the video.
—Madeline Buckley, Chicago Tribune, 26 Aug. 2025
Jackson then mounts Smith in the video and punches him in the face almost two dozen times before other wrestlers pull him off.
—Rudy Chinchilla, NBC news, 25 Aug. 2025
Visit Films is handling sales on the title, which punches well above the weight of its scrappy production with its brisk storytelling, compositional elegance and the crashing emotional wallop of its finale.
—Guy Lodge, Variety, 21 Aug. 2025
The city’s reputation for postindustrial grittiness is largely outdated, and it’s filled with sprawling green spaces, cutting-edge museums, and a restaurant and bar scene that punches well above its weight class—without the crowds who often clog Edinburgh’s stateliest sites.
—Nicholas Derenzo, AFAR Media, 20 Aug. 2025
Camari Solomon punches it in for Oviedo for the 2-yard run two plays after facing a third and long.
—Buddy Collings, The Orlando Sentinel, 16 Aug. 2025
Jeremiah punches Conrad, and the latter confesses his love to her.
—Lea Veloso, StyleCaster, 13 Aug. 2025
Seconds later, one man sucker-punches another partygoer, sending him flying headfirst into the water, as another man then jumps on top of him and lets loose with a flurry of follow-up punches.
—Michael Dorgan, FOXNews.com, 13 Aug. 2025
Christopher Rudolph, PEOPLE, 6 Sep. 2025
The one-two-three judicial punches could risk the president's plans to deport as many as 1 million people per year.
—Lauren Villagran, USA Today, 6 Sep. 2025
During the melee, several punches were thrown.
—Felipe Cardenas, New York Times, 5 Sep. 2025
Having weathered so many punches heretofore, the viewer is more likely to be numb than moved.
—Derek Robertson, The Washington Examiner, 5 Sep. 2025
The artist wore a sculptured piece made of car parts on top of a corset dress with hole punches at the bottom, designed by SLVA.
—EW.com, 31 Aug. 2025
As Vientos walked to first base, both benches and bullpens cleared for a few minutes, but no punches were thrown.
—Miami Herald, 31 Aug. 2025
Lynch and Bella exchanged punches as the crowd traded boos and cheers.
—Blake Oestriecher, Forbes.com, 31 Aug. 2025
And once Norvell starts trusting Dupree to carry the Rams home, those punches are going to draw blood.
—Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 31 Aug. 2025
Verb
Yet the firm punches above its weight in custody, consistently ranking third behind Coinbase and BitGo.
—Marie Poteriaieva, Forbes.com, 9 Sep. 2025
One of the officers then punches him three times, according to the video.
—Madeline Buckley, Chicago Tribune, 26 Aug. 2025
Jackson then mounts Smith in the video and punches him in the face almost two dozen times before other wrestlers pull him off.
—Rudy Chinchilla, NBC news, 25 Aug. 2025
Visit Films is handling sales on the title, which punches well above the weight of its scrappy production with its brisk storytelling, compositional elegance and the crashing emotional wallop of its finale.
—Guy Lodge, Variety, 21 Aug. 2025
The city’s reputation for postindustrial grittiness is largely outdated, and it’s filled with sprawling green spaces, cutting-edge museums, and a restaurant and bar scene that punches well above its weight class—without the crowds who often clog Edinburgh’s stateliest sites.
—Nicholas Derenzo, AFAR Media, 20 Aug. 2025
Camari Solomon punches it in for Oviedo for the 2-yard run two plays after facing a third and long.
—Buddy Collings, The Orlando Sentinel, 16 Aug. 2025
Jeremiah punches Conrad, and the latter confesses his love to her.
—Lea Veloso, StyleCaster, 13 Aug. 2025
Seconds later, one man sucker-punches another partygoer, sending him flying headfirst into the water, as another man then jumps on top of him and lets loose with a flurry of follow-up punches.
—Michael Dorgan, FOXNews.com, 13 Aug. 2025
Noun
Pop princess Kylie Minogue landed some punches as Cammy White in the 1994 Street Fighter film.
—Christopher Rudolph, PEOPLE, 6 Sep. 2025
The one-two-three judicial punches could risk the president's plans to deport as many as 1 million people per year.
—Lauren Villagran, USA Today, 6 Sep. 2025
During the melee, several punches were thrown.
—Felipe Cardenas, New York Times, 5 Sep. 2025
Having weathered so many punches heretofore, the viewer is more likely to be numb than moved.
—Derek Robertson, The Washington Examiner, 5 Sep. 2025
The artist wore a sculptured piece made of car parts on top of a corset dress with hole punches at the bottom, designed by SLVA.
—EW.com, 31 Aug. 2025
As Vientos walked to first base, both benches and bullpens cleared for a few minutes, but no punches were thrown.
—Miami Herald, 31 Aug. 2025
Lynch and Bella exchanged punches as the crowd traded boos and cheers.
—Blake Oestriecher, Forbes.com, 31 Aug. 2025
And once Norvell starts trusting Dupree to carry the Rams home, those punches are going to draw blood.
—Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 31 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for punches
Verb
-
Instead, Ted slaps him in the face, twice.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
5 Sep. 2025
-
Anthony thinks his fiancé wants a mother more than a partner, so Giuseppe slaps a pie into his face?—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
14 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
Parsons attended Cowboys practices during training camp but has not participated in any team drills.—
Chantz Martin,
FOXNews.com,
8 Aug. 2025
-
After sitting out of Saturday’s team drills with arm soreness, Sanders was a full participant at Monday’s practice, but Flacco took all of the first-team reps during the 11-on-11 portion, according to ESPN.—
Peter Sblendorio,
New York Daily News,
4 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
The Marswalker opens its fold-out front doors, and the S2 drives up into a central compartment before the doors close again to secure the S2 in place.—
PC Magazine,
PC Magazine,
4 Sep. 2025
-
Attendees acknowledged early how much of what drives housing costs lies outside city and state control, such as interest rates or labor and material supply.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
4 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Lightning hits the United States approximately 25 million times annually.—
STAR-TELEGRAM WEATHER BOT,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
6 Sep. 2025
-
Lightning hits the United States approximately 25 million times annually.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
And who the f--- pierces a 12 year old?—
Catherine Santino,
People.com,
2 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
The Chinese government runs an array of grantmaking programs to fund and promote research aligned with its national interests.—
Robert Schmad,
The Washington Examiner,
7 Sep. 2025
-
Max Verstappen’s Red Bull contract runs to 2028, while McLaren drivers Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris are also on long-term deals.—
Madeline Coleman,
New York Times,
6 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Harrison stabs Prater with the needle and knocks the billionaire out.—
Louis Peitzman,
Vulture,
5 Sep. 2025
-
When cosmic rays — including, in part, plain old protons from the Sun’s solar wind — strike the Moon, the recoil from those heavy elements knocks them into an excited state.—
Ethan Siegel,
Big Think,
4 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Drill holes in the bottom of recycling containers that are left outdoors.—
John Tufts,
IndyStar,
29 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Punches.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/punches. Accessed 12 Sep. 2025.
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