sucker punching

Definition of sucker punchingnext
present participle of sucker punch

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for sucker punching
Verb
  • South San Joaquin County Fire Authority However, after knocking down the flames, fire officials say crews found a person dead inside the shop.
    Cecilio Padilla, CBS News, 5 Jan. 2026
  • Luka Dončić had his way against the Hornets’ defense throughout the night, knocking down five 3-pointers in a 38-point performance.
    Shane Connuck, Charlotte Observer, 10 Nov. 2025
Verb
  • Kennedy Botts with Sisters PGH, a nonprofit serving the Black transgender community, is pushing back on that argument.
    Lauren Linder, CBS News, 9 Jan. 2026
  • Friends of the Everglades is pushing for 160 square miles of additional conservation land in the Everglades Agricultural Area, to create space for 1 million more acre-feet of water storage.
    Amy Green, Miami Herald, 9 Jan. 2026
Verb
  • Countries like China let their industries pollute freely, dumping chemicals into rivers, pumping toxins into the air and throwing plastics into the ocean.
    Chip Lamarca, Sun Sentinel, 6 Jan. 2026
  • Lately on TikTok, people have been dumping frozen orange juice concentrate into blenders alongside Greek yogurt, bananas, and other fridge and pantry staples to recreate the viral Orange Julius smoothie.
    Ashia Aubourg, Outside, 3 Jan. 2026
Verb
  • Later that month, another jury said Rafael Andres should be sent back to Florida’s Death Row for beating, stabbing and strangling a La Carreta waitress with a rice cooker cord in 2005.
    Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 7 Jan. 2026
  • Cincinnati crime fell under the microscope after the viral brawl in July and the stabbing death of an Over-the-Rhine resident and business owner in his own home.
    Scott Wartman, Cincinnati Enquirer, 6 Jan. 2026
Verb
  • Carneiro missed a field goal, as well, kicking a ball off the left upright.
    Adam Lichtenstein, Sun Sentinel, 9 Jan. 2026
  • Friday night is the very first night, and the team is kicking it off on Military Night.
    Kaley Fedko, CBS News, 9 Jan. 2026
Verb
  • This month, however, the USDA is slashing the maximum benefit roughly in half, so households with even modest incomes will see much steeper reductions that those with none.
    JOSÉ LUIS VILLEGAS, Sacbee.com, 7 Nov. 2025
  • In the first half of the year, Tesla suffered from falling revenue as anti-Musk protesters picketed Tesla showrooms to denounce his role in slashing foreign aid and other government spending.
    David Ingram, NBC news, 6 Nov. 2025
Verb
  • Stephen Ross, the Miami Dolphins’ majority owner since 2009, is now looking for his eighth different head coach in a parade of floundering, flailing and failing.
    Miami Herald, Miami Herald, 8 Jan. 2026
  • On Netflix Summer 2026 | Comedy A forty-year-old executive hopes to save his flailing career by joining a group of twenty-somethings on a wild three-day bachelor party, after he’s inadvertently added to their group text.
    Matt Grobar, Deadline, 7 Jan. 2026
Verb
  • That’s why many nail enthusiasts are switching to at-home mani-pedis — and turning it into a 2026 beauty trend.
    Sian Babish, PEOPLE, 9 Jan. 2026
  • The Aztecs had been switching the point guard-center ball screens, which put guards on 6-9 bouncy Nevada forward Elijah Price under the basket.
    Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Jan. 2026
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.

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Sucker punching.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sucker%20punching. Accessed 10 Jan. 2026.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!