as in punches
a hard strike with a part of the body or an instrument
one well aimed slug on the head knocked him out
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
1
as in snails
a lazy person
he's always a slug in the morning, which is why he prefers to sleep late
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in hits
to deliver a blow to (someone or something) usually in a strong vigorous manner
she got so angry that she slugged the back of the chair and knocked it over
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of slugs
Louise Parks, Martha Stewart, 17 May 2026
Japanese beetles and slugs are pesky nuisances that will go after the basil in your garden.
—Heather Bien, Southern Living, 16 May 2026
Hubbard squash, dill, and nasturtiums deter squash bugs, borers, and slugs while attracting pollinators.
—Lauren Landers, Better Homes & Gardens, 14 May 2026
Radishes Rapid growth makes radishes ideal as companion plants and trap crops, effective for drawing flea beetles, aphids, slugs, snails, harlequin bugs, and cabbage root maggots away from tomatoes, eggplant, brassicas, cucumbers, and squash.
—Barbara Gillette, The Spruce, 3 May 2026
Watch your step for banana slugs.
—Daniel Bromfield, The Mercury News, 6 Jan. 2025
Gastropods are a class of mollusks that include snails, slugs and whelks.
—Irene Wright, Miami Herald, 3 Jan. 2025
Thomas Jones, Austin American Statesman, 6 Mar. 2026
Padilla and Hernandez toss out different accents – German (in which Storrie slugs a beer), Cajun, French, Shrek, Na’vi — even Shakespeare.
—Denise Petski, Deadline, 25 Feb. 2026
Machado slugs 169 points higher in wins.
—Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Aug. 2025
Noun
However, borax will not work on pests that aren't interested in eating it, such as termites, bed bugs, mosquitoes, flying insects above ground level, or any number of other outdoor pests, such as slugs and snails.
—Louise Parks, Martha Stewart, 17 May 2026
Japanese beetles and slugs are pesky nuisances that will go after the basil in your garden.
—Heather Bien, Southern Living, 16 May 2026
Hubbard squash, dill, and nasturtiums deter squash bugs, borers, and slugs while attracting pollinators.
—Lauren Landers, Better Homes & Gardens, 14 May 2026
Radishes Rapid growth makes radishes ideal as companion plants and trap crops, effective for drawing flea beetles, aphids, slugs, snails, harlequin bugs, and cabbage root maggots away from tomatoes, eggplant, brassicas, cucumbers, and squash.
—Barbara Gillette, The Spruce, 3 May 2026
Watch your step for banana slugs.
—Daniel Bromfield, The Mercury News, 6 Jan. 2025
Gastropods are a class of mollusks that include snails, slugs and whelks.
—Irene Wright, Miami Herald, 3 Jan. 2025
Verb
The Texas first baseman slugs her team-high 12th homer of the year over the left-field fence as the Longhorns regain the lead.
—Thomas Jones, Austin American Statesman, 6 Mar. 2026
Padilla and Hernandez toss out different accents – German (in which Storrie slugs a beer), Cajun, French, Shrek, Na’vi — even Shakespeare.
—Denise Petski, Deadline, 25 Feb. 2026
Machado slugs 169 points higher in wins.
—Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 13 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for slugs
Noun
-
In the lightweight division, Salahdine Parnasse (23-2) defeated Kenneth Cross (17-5) in the first round after landing a flurry of punches and dominating him early.—
Eduard Cauich,
Los Angeles Times,
17 May 2026
-
There were more hugs after the fight between the two than punches landed, and, in total, far more time clocked during those hugs than the fight itself.—
Sean Joseph OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
17 May 2026
Noun
-
However, borax will not work on pests that aren't interested in eating it, such as termites, bed bugs, mosquitoes, flying insects above ground level, or any number of other outdoor pests, such as slugs and snails.—
Louise Parks,
Martha Stewart,
17 May 2026
-
The snails’ iron-rich shell is a vital part of their survival strategy—but not as a protective armor, says Chong Chen, a senior scientist at the Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology and a leading expert on the scaly-foot snail, who led the effort to map its genome.—
Adam Kovac,
Scientific American,
15 May 2026
Noun
-
Neighbors Café, a breakfast and lunch counter spot, skews healthy with wellness drinks like a supershroom latte, fresh juices and smoothies, and overnight oats (there are also tasty pastries and breakfast sandwiches).—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
18 May 2026
-
When this happens, passengers are asked to dump their drinks out in a dedicated dumping facility or throw the whole thing away into a trash can.—
Amelia McBride,
Travel + Leisure,
17 May 2026
Verb
-
When a heat wave hits, millions of air conditioners switch on at once, straining the electric grid and driving up the risk of outages — and residents’ power bills.—
Kiki Sideris,
Los Angeles Times,
13 May 2026
-
Zesica Flutter-sleeve Smocked Midi Dress Flattering and versatile, this dress hits the sweet spot between refined and playful.—
Rosie Marder,
Travel + Leisure,
13 May 2026
Noun
-
Gadd gained almost 90 pounds to play adult Ruben (Stuart Campbell in flashbacks), the fractured older-brother figure of Niall (Jamie Bell as an adult; Mitchell Robertson as an adolescent), while their mothers date each other.—
Savannah Walsh,
Vanity Fair,
14 May 2026
-
Onions are truly the star of this cheesy recipe that calls for 2 1/2 pounds of a sweet variety.—
Kaitlyn Yarborough,
Southern Living,
14 May 2026
Noun
-
President Volodymyr Zelensky called the long-range strikes ‘entirely justified’ retaliation for Russian assaults on Kyiv, as Moscow reported intercepting more than 1,000 Ukrainian drones over its territory and occupied Crimea.—
Samya Kullab,
Los Angeles Times,
17 May 2026
-
In March, engineers at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Southern California completed tests on rotor designs that could be used to fly those drones, spinning the experimental helicopter blades fast enough for their tips to exceed Mach 1 (the speed of sound).—
Josh Dinner,
Space.com,
17 May 2026
Noun
-
Around 3pm, the judges took their first sips.—
Mark Dent,
HubSpot,
15 May 2026
-
In between sips of craft beer, patrons walk around a silent auction put on by Juntos Podemos, a volunteer mutual aid group that helps immigrants with groceries and rent.—
Sergio Martínez-Beltrán,
NPR,
13 May 2026
Verb
-
He wasn’t invited to the combine this winter and drew knocks from some evaluators for his lack of length and his inconsistency as a pass rusher.—
Dan Wiederer,
New York Times,
11 May 2026
-
Temperatures will be near 81 degrees on Monday, and then turn cooler on Tuesday through Thursday after a cold front knocks them back into the mid- to upper 60s.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
1 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Slugs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/slugs. Accessed 20 May. 2026.
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