scourging

verb

present participle of scourge
1
as in ravaging
to bring destruction to (something) through violent action barbarians scourged the countryside, leaving village after village burned to the ground

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in whipping
to strike repeatedly with something long and thin or flexible scourge the tree with a whip to loosen the bark

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for scourging
  1. ravaging
  2. whipping
  3. destroying
  4. hiding
  5. devastating
  6. slashing
  7. lashing
  8. flogging
Verb
  • But Vicente dismisses global heating as the main reason for the fires that are ravaging Europe.
    — Chris Marshall-Bell, New York Times, 3 Sep. 2026
  • The resumption of classes comes in the middle of a ravaging disease outbreak that is spreading rapidly.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 1 Sep. 2026
Definition of ravaging
Verb
  • Two months later, the couple went Instagram official, as the SKIMS founder was featured in a video which showed the F1 driver whipping around in his Ferrari F40 at the Daikoku Parking Area in Tokyo, Japan.
    — Stephanie Sengwe, PEOPLE, 1 Sep. 2026
  • Mercedes removed Willow’s cat, but Willow answered by whipping Mercedes with the AEW Women’s World Championship belt.
    — Alfred Konuwa, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2026
Definition of whipping
Verb
  • In the early months of 2022, Russian forces occupied Irpin, destroying roughly 70% of the city.
    — Aidan Stretch, CBS News, 8 Sep. 2026
  • Tucker Desmond, who pleaded guilty to destroying evidence of other plotters' crimes, was sentenced to probation.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 7 Sep. 2026
Definition of destroying
Verb
  • However, researchers found that more than 15,000 of those edits had been made by AI agents that used the pages to share various tactics and tips for cheating, hacking, and hiding their behavior from human monitors.
    — Beatrice Nolan, Fortune, 7 Sep. 2026
  • On rainy days when the sun is hiding and the temperatures are cool, consider these your emotional support pants.
    — Stephanie Osmanski, Better Homes & Gardens, 5 Sep. 2026
Definition of hiding
Verb
  • The country is also recovering from devastating back-to-back earthquakes in June that have so far killed over 6,000 people.
    — Syra Ortiz Blanes, Miami Herald, 5 Sep. 2026
  • Rescue operations and clean-up crews are still working in the wake of last week’s devastating debris avalanche and floods in Nepal and Tibet.
    — Jackie Flynn Mogensen, Scientific American, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of devastating
Verb
  • The new approach, the research team explains, could replace the current slow, labor-intensive process, ultimately slashing the cost of production.
    — Christopher McFadden, Interesting Engineering, 6 Sep. 2026
  • Lululemon is down more than 20% after reporting a weak quarter and slashing its full-year outlook.
    — Jeff Marks, CNBC, 4 Sep. 2026
Definition of slashing
Verb
  • This week’s meeting of G20 finance ministers underscored rising global trade tensions, with several countries, including the US, lashing out at China.
    — Jeronimo Gonzalez, semafor.com, 4 Sep. 2026
  • Odysseus ended up lashing himself to the mast and ordering his crew to plug their ears with wax.
    — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 27 Aug. 2026
Definition of lashing
Verb
  • So, that is one gig at a completely unnecessary addition to the sports calendar, created by corporate interests for the sole intention of flogging products to people who do not really like sport… and another at the Enhanced Games.
    — Matt Slater, New York Times, 23 May 2026
  • In an even more meta moment, Amazon interrupted its own Upfront with actual ads with Summer House star Paige DeSorbo flogging certain items to an increasingly frustrated audience.
    — Peter White, Deadline, 11 May 2026
Definition of flogging
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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scourges
scourging
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Cite this Entry

“Scourging.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/scourging. Accessed 10 Sep. 2026.

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