as in licking
to strike repeatedly
you should take a course in anger management—you can't go around punching out people
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Recent Examples of punching out
When Houston did rally another time in the fifth, Ohtani got out of it by punching out a future Hall of Famer, Jose Altuve.
—
Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 6 May 2026
Pérez looked in control almost immediately, striking out Garrett Mitchell to begin the game and punching out five through his first three innings.
—Noah Gulley, Miami Herald, 19 Apr. 2026
On Azaelea, the iconic 13th hole, McIlroy was again way offline, punching out from the pine straw and hitting a security rope on the ground.
—Don Riddell, CNN Money, 12 Apr. 2026
In the bottom of the eighth, former Giant Camilo Doval struck out the side, punching out Ramos, Casey Schmitt and Patrick Bailey — all swinging.
—Justice Delos Santos, Mercury News, 27 Mar. 2026
The 24-year-old Sasaki threw a smooth 16 pitches, punching out the right-handed hitting Zavala, and inducing a pair of groundballs to shortstop from the lefty Kim.
—Jack Vita, Los Angeles Times, 15 Feb. 2026
This bumps displacement from the Shiver's 896cc up to 996cc, punching out 105 hp at 9,000 rpm and 66 lb-ft of torque (95 Nm) at 6,500 rpm.
—New Atlas, 27 Dec. 2025
Outside linebacker K’Lavon Chaisson later had the game-clinching takeaway late in the fourth quarter after the Patriots had taken the lead, punching out the ball after a catch by Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers that cornerback Marcus Jones recovered.
—Doug Kyed, Boston Herald, 22 Dec. 2025
Two-time Cy Young award winner Blake Snell tossed six scoreless innings, punching out nine and allowing just one hit.
—Gabe Smallson, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Oct. 2025
Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 6 May 2026
Pérez looked in control almost immediately, striking out Garrett Mitchell to begin the game and punching out five through his first three innings.
—Noah Gulley, Miami Herald, 19 Apr. 2026
On Azaelea, the iconic 13th hole, McIlroy was again way offline, punching out from the pine straw and hitting a security rope on the ground.
—Don Riddell, CNN Money, 12 Apr. 2026
In the bottom of the eighth, former Giant Camilo Doval struck out the side, punching out Ramos, Casey Schmitt and Patrick Bailey — all swinging.
—Justice Delos Santos, Mercury News, 27 Mar. 2026
The 24-year-old Sasaki threw a smooth 16 pitches, punching out the right-handed hitting Zavala, and inducing a pair of groundballs to shortstop from the lefty Kim.
—Jack Vita, Los Angeles Times, 15 Feb. 2026
This bumps displacement from the Shiver's 896cc up to 996cc, punching out 105 hp at 9,000 rpm and 66 lb-ft of torque (95 Nm) at 6,500 rpm.
—New Atlas, 27 Dec. 2025
Outside linebacker K’Lavon Chaisson later had the game-clinching takeaway late in the fourth quarter after the Patriots had taken the lead, punching out the ball after a catch by Ravens wide receiver Zay Flowers that cornerback Marcus Jones recovered.
—Doug Kyed, Boston Herald, 22 Dec. 2025
Two-time Cy Young award winner Blake Snell tossed six scoreless innings, punching out nine and allowing just one hit.
—Gabe Smallson, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for punching out
Verb
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Then they got knocked to the ice, stomped on and left licking their feathers after the first two periods of their Stanley Cup playoff game with the Vegas Golden Knights.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
9 May 2026
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But host Kristen Kish is licking her lips at the prospect of taking the show even further afield in the future.—
Peter White,
Deadline,
4 May 2026
Verb
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JWords takes a different tack on Sound Therapy, embracing gentle synth melodies and pads that take the edge off her skittering drums and pounding basslines.—
Stephen Kearse,
Pitchfork,
11 May 2026
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Apple Bank of America said Apple remains a table-pounding buy.—
Michael Bloom,
CNBC,
9 May 2026
Verb
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There are a lot of little extras hiding in cupboards or around the corner.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
14 May 2026
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The entire operation was hiding in plain sight, neighbors said.—
Allen Devlin,
CBS News,
13 May 2026
Verb
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The whole episode, Kyle is a pendulum swinging between anger and sadness, between lashing out and injuring Amanda, and looking to be the victim.—
Brian Moylan,
Vulture,
13 May 2026
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San José Mayor Matt Mahan started off the debate by lashing out at both Republicans and Democrats.—
Seema Mehta,
Los Angeles Times,
7 May 2026
Verb
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Raw came back from break with all three teams taking turns working over Akira Tozawa.—
Alfred Konuwa,
Forbes.com,
26 Jan. 2026
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Using clean hands and working over a colander, wring out the extra water and tear the soaked bread into pieces.—
Karla Walsh,
Better Homes & Gardens,
30 Oct. 2025
Verb
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It was delivered by the 7-foot-4 Victor Wembanyama, whose torso uncorked in a fit of frustration that sent his right elbow whipping toward Reid’s windpipe like a torpedo bat flying through the strike zone.—
Jon Krawczynski,
New York Times,
11 May 2026
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That abundance of tall buildings also contributes to the city’s famous wind, which was really whipping all four days of our visit.—
Jess Fleming,
Twin Cities,
7 May 2026
Verb
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Our desire to see each other can remain the same but the means of doing so have to be flexible.—
R. Eric Thomas,
Chicago Tribune,
10 May 2026
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Just a wonderful man that teaches you lessons, teaches you camaraderie, unity, doing things as a unit, that no one’s different.—
Doug Padilla,
Oc Register,
10 May 2026
Verb
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This is as good as any New York team has looked in a long time, maybe since the Giants got on that roll on their way to beating the 18-0 Patriots in Glendale, Ariz.—
Mike Lupica,
Hartford Courant,
11 May 2026
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The surge in energy prices helped Saudi Aramco to report a 26% year-on-year jump in first-quarter profit on Sunday, beating analysts’ forecasts.—
Lim Hui Jie,
CNBC,
11 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Punching out.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/punching%20out. Accessed 14 May. 2026.
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