1
as in unacceptable
falling short of a standard
she plays a punk game of tennis, so you won't have any trouble beating her
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in terrible
extremely unsatisfactory
the acting in the movie ranged all the way from poor to punk
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in sick
temporarily suffering from a disorder of the body
I've been feeling punk today
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in novice
a person who is just starting out in a field of activity
an impertinent punk who was trying to tell senior colleagues how to do their jobs
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in thug
a violent, brutal person who is often a member of an organized gang
the vigilante was hailed by some as a hero for standing up to the punks who had repeatedly threatened his family
Synonyms & Similar Words
3
as in garbage
language, behavior, or ideas that are absurd and contrary to good sense
claims made by cosmetic companies about their antiaging creams that turned out to be a lot of punk
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of punk
Matt Grobar, Deadline, 5 Nov. 2025
Even the house’s actual residents were the right types—one was a post-punk musician Trier admired.
—Margaret Talbot, New Yorker, 3 Nov. 2025
Travis Pinson, Dallas Morning News, 15 Feb. 2026
Born and raised in San Diego, Russo grew up immersed in music from an early age, with a father who performed in a pop-punk band and made live instrumentation and creative collaboration part of her everyday life.
—Kristen Wisneski, Billboard, 13 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for punk
Adjective
Described as Superbad meets Derry Girls, Bender is based on the late-’70s, post-punk Dublin coming-of-age experiences of Adrian Cunningham, who penned the script.
—Matt Grobar, Deadline, 5 Nov. 2025
Even the house’s actual residents were the right types—one was a post-punk musician Trier admired.
—Margaret Talbot, New Yorker, 3 Nov. 2025
Noun
Since her initial burst of mainstream pop success, Lindemann has continually reinvented her sound — blending pop, alt-rock, pop-punk and darker alternative influences into a fiercely personal style.
—Travis Pinson, Dallas Morning News, 15 Feb. 2026
Born and raised in San Diego, Russo grew up immersed in music from an early age, with a father who performed in a pop-punk band and made live instrumentation and creative collaboration part of her everyday life.
—Kristen Wisneski, Billboard, 13 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for punk
Recent Examples of Synonyms for punk
Adjective
-
The behavior's unacceptable, and so this is our way to try to end it or stop it, at least here in Manteca.—
Charlie Lapastora,
CBS News,
18 Feb. 2026
-
That is completely unacceptable.—
Howard Blume,
Los Angeles Times,
18 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The question was about the student section’s harassment of former Spartan Xavier Booker, which seemed like a legitimate query considering Booker had a terrible game.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
19 Feb. 2026
-
The move was expected because Hill, who played for the Chiefs from 2016-‘21 before being traded to the Dolphins, is recovering from a terrible knee injury.—
Pete Grathoff,
Kansas City Star,
19 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Olsky's mother, under 70 pounds and nine months pregnant, was put in the sick car on the train, surrounded by sick and dying women.—
Lesley Stahl,
CBS News,
16 Feb. 2026
-
Edgar finds them together, gets angry and Cathy gets even sicker.—
Meg Walters,
Glamour,
16 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Prepping a seating chart and staggering hot pot novices with pros can help guests feel taken care of.—
Melissa Kravitz Hoeffner,
Martha Stewart,
20 Feb. 2026
-
The English landowner and novice farmer Jethro Tull hated the idea of giving seeds away to birds.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
19 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
In a season 3 teaser, Peter saves Suraj Sharma's Jay Batra from some thugs at a soccer stadium.—
Randall Colburn,
Entertainment Weekly,
19 Feb. 2026
-
Foucauld had later left the army to become a Trappist monk and had established himself as a missionary in Tamanrasset, Algeria, in the middle of the Sahara Desert; he was killed there by local thugs in 1916.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
17 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
The study also noted that many of these companies guaranteed some news outlets would cover the press releases, and were essentially flooding the space with garbage crypto information dressed up to look like reliable news.—
Max Tani,
semafor.com,
16 Feb. 2026
-
If certain items can't be put in your regular garbage and recycling bins, do the right thing and run it to your local garbage disposal center instead.—
Kate McKenna,
The Spruce,
15 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Now Rubio was telling liberal centrist foreign leaders that their entire outlook was wrong, echoing the far-right populist opponents who might well unseat them in upcoming elections.—
Nick Paton Walsh,
CNN Money,
15 Feb. 2026
-
And so the custodians became irate when photographs emerged of the actor Sarah Pidgeon, who plays Bessette in Murphy’s show, looking all wrong on set.—
Doreen St. Félix,
New Yorker,
14 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
And for the next year its law enforcement members were hailed as heroes for their efforts that prevented a horrible situation from becoming even worse.—
Denise Crosby,
Chicago Tribune,
15 Feb. 2026
-
There’s nary a crease to be seen in Bina Daigeler’s costumes, all covetable, unapproachable and tailored to the gods; Matthew Herbert’s score may be among the lushest ever slathered over such horrible goings-on.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
14 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Punk.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/punk. Accessed 22 Feb. 2026.
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