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
Isabel Yip, NBC news, 1 Feb. 2026
As a point of comparison, the most petite room covers 225 square feet, but still punches above its weight in design.
—Arati Menon, Condé Nast Traveler, 30 Jan. 2026
For podcasts, streams, voiceovers and video calls, this unit punches above its weight.
—New Atlas, 24 Jan. 2026
This is really reminding me of that House episode where the runway model punches another model out and then collapses on the catwalk.
—Emma Specter, Vogue, 22 Jan. 2026
Housing is one of those sectors that punches above its weight, thanks to all the other purchases that come with the purchase of a new home, such as services, appliances, furniture, and so on.
—Zev Fima, CNBC, 19 Jan. 2026
In frame two, Gonzalez punches the ball through to Foden, who rotates with Doku to drift into a pocket of space.
—Thom Harris, New York Times, 12 Jan. 2026
Coley punches back, and Sonya manages to pull her off of him.
—Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 17 Dec. 2025
Red Masks hold Fiona back Fiona as Constance punches her multiple times.
—Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 9 Dec. 2025
Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 8 Feb. 2026
From that moment forward, the two Bay State Conference foes traded punches throughout, exchanging one run after the next.
—Brendan Connelly, Boston Herald, 7 Feb. 2026
The two-man game with Miles also gives TCU one of the best 1-2 punches nationally and could be the key to the Horned Frogs repeating as Big 12 champions in the regular season and at the conference tournament in Kansas City next month.
—Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 6 Feb. 2026
After Henderson’s Riley McKay made reckless contact with Clang early in Wednesday’s second period, Gulls forward Tristan Luneau skated in, flipped McKay on his back and unleashed a series of punches to McKay’s face.
—Ivan Carter, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Feb. 2026
Then, head to Cutters for one of the best rum punches on the island.
—Kristin Braswell, Travel + Leisure, 3 Feb. 2026
Vasilevskiy appeared to land more punches than Swayman.
—Fluto Shinzawa, New York Times, 2 Feb. 2026
Located just 30 minutes from downtown Vancouver, Cypress Mountain is more of a commuter hill than a destination resort, but its terrain punches well above its weight.
—Brent Rose, Condé Nast Traveler, 1 Feb. 2026
But one of the punches knocked Miller’s head backward, and his hairpiece popped upward from the front, revealing a large bald spot that covered most of his head.
—Isabel Yip, NBC news, 1 Feb. 2026
Verb
Kingsley Ibeh, right, punches Jarrell Miller during a heavyweight boxing match in New York City on Saturday.
—Isabel Yip, NBC news, 1 Feb. 2026
As a point of comparison, the most petite room covers 225 square feet, but still punches above its weight in design.
—Arati Menon, Condé Nast Traveler, 30 Jan. 2026
For podcasts, streams, voiceovers and video calls, this unit punches above its weight.
—New Atlas, 24 Jan. 2026
This is really reminding me of that House episode where the runway model punches another model out and then collapses on the catwalk.
—Emma Specter, Vogue, 22 Jan. 2026
Housing is one of those sectors that punches above its weight, thanks to all the other purchases that come with the purchase of a new home, such as services, appliances, furniture, and so on.
—Zev Fima, CNBC, 19 Jan. 2026
In frame two, Gonzalez punches the ball through to Foden, who rotates with Doku to drift into a pocket of space.
—Thom Harris, New York Times, 12 Jan. 2026
Coley punches back, and Sonya manages to pull her off of him.
—Anthony D'alessandro, Deadline, 17 Dec. 2025
Red Masks hold Fiona back Fiona as Constance punches her multiple times.
—Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 9 Dec. 2025
Noun
Only invite friends and relatives who are willing to discuss Bill Belichick and Tom Brady without punches being thrown.
—Paul Sullivan, Chicago Tribune, 8 Feb. 2026
From that moment forward, the two Bay State Conference foes traded punches throughout, exchanging one run after the next.
—Brendan Connelly, Boston Herald, 7 Feb. 2026
The two-man game with Miles also gives TCU one of the best 1-2 punches nationally and could be the key to the Horned Frogs repeating as Big 12 champions in the regular season and at the conference tournament in Kansas City next month.
—Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 6 Feb. 2026
After Henderson’s Riley McKay made reckless contact with Clang early in Wednesday’s second period, Gulls forward Tristan Luneau skated in, flipped McKay on his back and unleashed a series of punches to McKay’s face.
—Ivan Carter, San Diego Union-Tribune, 5 Feb. 2026
Then, head to Cutters for one of the best rum punches on the island.
—Kristin Braswell, Travel + Leisure, 3 Feb. 2026
Vasilevskiy appeared to land more punches than Swayman.
—Fluto Shinzawa, New York Times, 2 Feb. 2026
Located just 30 minutes from downtown Vancouver, Cypress Mountain is more of a commuter hill than a destination resort, but its terrain punches well above its weight.
—Brent Rose, Condé Nast Traveler, 1 Feb. 2026
But one of the punches knocked Miller’s head backward, and his hairpiece popped upward from the front, revealing a large bald spot that covered most of his head.
—Isabel Yip, NBC news, 1 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for punches
Verb
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Boston Blue slaps a fresh coat of paint on Blue Bloods, the CBS procedural that ended its 14-season run last year.—
Randall Colburn,
Entertainment Weekly,
20 Dec. 2025
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Speaking with Cocoa Butter about her most memorable roles, Calloway revealed that the moment Ike slaps Jackie came across so emotional and raw because the stunt went wrong.—
Angela Andaloro,
PEOPLE,
5 Dec. 2025
Verb
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Everette, who with punter Brett Thorson and long snapper Beau Gardner are the former Bulldogs competing in Senior Bowl drills this week, is adjusting to life after Georgia football.—
Mike Griffith,
AJC.com,
29 Jan. 2026
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Every college and pro coach drills the same message into their players’ heads, nothing good happens after midnight.—
Ryan Gaydos , Jackson Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
16 Nov. 2025
Verb
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Unlike body composition metrics, BMI obscures the true extent of metabolic dysfunction and cannot distinguish between muscle and fat — or between superficial fat and the visceral fat that drives diabetes, heart disease and other chronic conditions.—
Bret Scher,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
5 Feb. 2026
-
Some of what also drives Honnold is making the world a better place.—
Graham Womack,
Sacbee.com,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
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For Rios, the celebration hits home — quite literally — as a Bay Area native.—
Ryan Morik,
FOXNews.com,
4 Feb. 2026
-
The deadline that will accompany the NHL’s Olympic roster freeze, which hits at noon Pacific Time on Wednesday, shouldn’t be viewed as a prequel for the actual trade deadline.—
Thomas Drance,
New York Times,
4 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Nothing that pierces the skin should ever be used as leverage over a child's opportunity to education and to learn.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
12 Dec. 2025
-
Nicole Kidman's stare pierces the room.—
Jennifer Brett,
Nashville Tennessean,
16 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
Monroe Hammond joined Everyday Health in 2021 and now runs the news desk as an editor.—
Tom Gavin,
EverydayHealth.com,
5 Feb. 2026
-
OpenAI says the new model runs 25% faster than the previous version and achieves state-of-the-art performance while using fewer computing resources.—
Jared Perlo,
NBC news,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Opportunity knocks on software stocks, including Microsoft (MSFT), Salesforce (CRM), and ServiceNow (NOW), which all got slammed in Thursday's trading amid pressure on the software sector ETF (IGV) from artificial intelligence (AI) disruption concerns.—
Jeff Kilburg,
CNBC,
30 Jan. 2026
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Julio Cesar Chavez suffers his first loss in 91 fights when Frankie Randall knocks him down in the 11th round and wins the WBC super lightweight championship on a split decision.—
Assistant Sports Editor,
Los Angeles Times,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Some of those trails, initially seen in January, were made by moving dirt to clear a space and creating small mounds and/or holes in the ground to jump over.—
Ashley Mackin Solomon,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
5 Feb. 2026
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The major effect results when the compost penetrates the aeration holes.—
Calvin Finch,
San Antonio Express-News,
30 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Punches.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/punches. Accessed 10 Feb. 2026.
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