1
as in hides
to strike repeatedly with something long and thin or flexible
Grandpa told us that when he was a kid, if he misbehaved at all, his father would tan his backside with a belt
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in licks
to strike repeatedly
a time when children were routinely tanned for misbehavior
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tans
Verb
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But outside of the ring, Christy hides and represses her lesbianism and winds up marrying her trainer Jim Martin (Ben Foster), who manipulates and physically abuses her.—
Edward Segarra,
USA Today,
13 Sep. 2025 -
The game requires good reflexes—especially for bosses and platform challenges—that can punish even small mistakes with relatively large penalties and hides large chunks of the game behind difficulty gates with no tuning options that might offer some relief.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
11 Sep. 2025
Verb
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When asked the question, the owl takes the lollipop and licks it three times before chomping down on its hard shell exterior and handing the stick back to the child.—
Moná Thomas,
People.com,
8 Sep. 2025
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The pair is seen crawling through a wildflower field, dancing, and jumping, but also hollering at each other, brandishing knives, and at some point, Lawrence licks a window with zeal.—
Mankaprr Conteh,
Rolling Stone,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
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To accomplish this, Barton turned to the fundamental dance technique of spotting, where the dancer finds a focal point in front of them and whips their head around to hold that focus spot and keep themself centered.—
Oliver Sava,
Vulture,
28 Aug. 2025
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Wind whips both the sound waves and temperatures around, so bring a blanket even if it’s not forecast to rain or hail.—
John Wenzel,
Denver Post,
19 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Then, there’s the one about the two Asian guys who are harnessed to a chariot and made to pull it along, like horses, with bits in their mouths, while this other Asian guy, holding the reins, lashes them with a whip.—
Anthony Lane,
New Yorker,
8 Sep. 2025
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Usually, when one partner lashes out, the other responds in kind.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
16 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Cherry picks up a knife and slashes Laura’s tires on the way out, for good measure.—
Rafaela Bassili,
Vulture,
10 Sep. 2025
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This high-speed rotation slashes production time for cylindrical components by more than two-thirds.—
Georgina Jedikovska,
Interesting Engineering,
3 Sep. 2025
Verb
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The scene flicks to a flashback of Henry at war, which then switches to Henry in his previous timeline suffering from a nightmare.—
Lincee Ray Published,
EW.com,
22 Aug. 2025
Verb
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Even as Russia attacks power plants, grids, and neighborhoods, Ukraine’s energy system has endured and adapted, becoming a decentralized network that keeps homes lit, factories running, and morale intact.—
Ken Silverstein,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
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Meanwhile, on the opposite side, Eze attacks the space vertically — rather than diagonally behind the centre-backs — to be in Pedro Porro’s blindside as Munoz is carrying the ball forward.—
Ahmed Walid,
New York Times,
11 Sep. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Tans.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tans. Accessed 16 Sep. 2025.
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