as in extremely
to a great degree
wrote several thumping big books on World War II
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in smacking
to deliver a blow to (someone or something) usually in a strong vigorous manner
thumped the desk with his hand as he delivered his speech
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in licking
to strike repeatedly
playfully knocked his younger brother down and began to thump him with a foam bat
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in pounding
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of thumping
Mark Sparrow, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025
Somewhere off the coast of Nantucket, the bass on the pool deck was thumping.
—Paul Brady, Travel + Leisure, 2 Sep. 2025
And the thump, thump, thumping of her brother’s hands pounding a heavy bag.
—Kyle Newman, Denver Post, 30 Aug. 2025
For the song’s second half, Alabama Shakes follow a thumping bridge into an extended psych-soul outro, Howard’s voice and the guitars wailing in the same anguished register.
—Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 29 Aug. 2025
At times, the DJ would shut off the music pulsating across the rooftop to heighten the tense games with the sound of a thumping heartbeat.
—Devin Robertson, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 Aug. 2025
And Brenden Aaronson will hope to make his first start of the season for Leeds United if Daniel Farke makes changes after their 5-0 thumping by Arsenal on Saturday.
—Greg O'Keeffe, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2025
Hollow Knight’s award-winning composer, Christopher Larkin, brings melancholy melodies, symphonic strings and heart-thumping, soul strumming boss themes to the adventure.
—Jennifer Maas, Variety, 22 Aug. 2025
The Bronx rapper posted a clip dancing to the thumping single, which finds her twerking in a pair of jean shorts with a red leather jacket top and strappy blue heels.
—Michael Saponara, Billboard, 22 Aug. 2025
Noun
The Boombox 4 is pure JBL, right down to the foot-thumping bass and the innovative tech.
—Mark Sparrow, Forbes.com, 3 Sep. 2025
Somewhere off the coast of Nantucket, the bass on the pool deck was thumping.
—Paul Brady, Travel + Leisure, 2 Sep. 2025
And the thump, thump, thumping of her brother’s hands pounding a heavy bag.
—Kyle Newman, Denver Post, 30 Aug. 2025
For the song’s second half, Alabama Shakes follow a thumping bridge into an extended psych-soul outro, Howard’s voice and the guitars wailing in the same anguished register.
—Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 29 Aug. 2025
At times, the DJ would shut off the music pulsating across the rooftop to heighten the tense games with the sound of a thumping heartbeat.
—Devin Robertson, MSNBC Newsweek, 27 Aug. 2025
And Brenden Aaronson will hope to make his first start of the season for Leeds United if Daniel Farke makes changes after their 5-0 thumping by Arsenal on Saturday.
—Greg O'Keeffe, New York Times, 25 Aug. 2025
Hollow Knight’s award-winning composer, Christopher Larkin, brings melancholy melodies, symphonic strings and heart-thumping, soul strumming boss themes to the adventure.
—Jennifer Maas, Variety, 22 Aug. 2025
The Bronx rapper posted a clip dancing to the thumping single, which finds her twerking in a pair of jean shorts with a red leather jacket top and strappy blue heels.
—Michael Saponara, Billboard, 22 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for thumping
Adverb
-
In extremely dense fog where visibility is near zero, the best course of action is to first turn on your hazard lights, then simply pull into a safe location such as a parking lot of a local business, and stop.—
KANSAS CITY STAR WEATHER BOT,
Kansas City Star,
6 Sep. 2025
-
Lisa, 28, wore a black maxi dress with cutouts, and paired the look with an extremely rare Hermès Birkin while in South Korea's capital city.—
Madison E. Goldberg,
PEOPLE,
5 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
In the middle, a president who promised to put both conflicts to bed – and whose talk of a Nobel Peace Prize is smacking up against the reality of the Gaza and Ukraine wars.—
Francesca Chambers,
USA Today,
7 Sep. 2025
-
Under the hot summer sun, players drip sweat after repeatedly smacking into each other during long, physical practices.—
Andy Greder,
Twin Cities,
21 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
One end of the spectrum are stress fracture, which are very small, often described as hairline fractures that result from repetitive force and pounding to the bone over time.—
Bruce Y. Lee,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
-
It’s typed with such pounding despair and fury that certain letters of the alphabet actually tear through the paper (this was an old, manual typewriter).—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
11 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
Luka was placed on heavy sedation, but even that wasn't enough to stop his heavy thrashing.—
Alyce Collins,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 Sep. 2025
-
Barcelona’s thrashing of Alhama was the match with the most interventions (12) and the only game in which there were no challenges was Athletic Club’s goalless draw with CD Tenerife.—
Laia Cervelló Herrero,
New York Times,
6 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
In her latest Jo + Tiny Mic series on Instagram, the Texas native shared four of her favorite secrets to instantly elevate a room, and the principles can be perfectly applied to your fall home decor using Gaines’ very own Magnolia collection at Target.—
Stephanie Osmanski,
Better Homes & Gardens,
9 Sep. 2025
-
In heated hearings over the past week, Republicans released very little information about the map’s impact on specific communities across the Kansas City area.—
Kacen Bayless,
Kansas City Star,
9 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Later that night Plumier demonstrates by swiftly slapping the limp green body of a bullfrog hard across his leg.—
Sophie Hartley,
IndyStar,
9 Sep. 2025
-
Tchervinski can be seen in one of videos of the incident slapping a Black man.—
Cameron Knight,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
8 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Excluding the pandemic, that’s the slowest average monthly gain for that January to August time frame since 2010, when the United States was still licking its wounds from the Great Recession.—
Alicia Wallace,
CNN Money,
5 Sep. 2025
-
Today, Alabama is licking its wounds.—
Don Yaeger,
Forbes.com,
2 Sep. 2025
Adverb
-
As a result, Green Bay just got glitzier — and America’s Team appears pretty damn far from Super.—
Michael Silver,
New York Times,
29 Aug. 2025
-
The Orange Is the New Black star helped launch EW's annual LGBTQ+ issue — and looked damn good doing it.—
Leah Greenblatt,
EW.com,
14 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Thumping.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/thumping. Accessed 13 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share