as in smacking
to deliver a blow to (someone or something) usually in a strong vigorous manner
thwacked the growling dog on the nose with a rolled-up newspaper
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of thwacking
Modern readers may take heart in the fact that there are many excellent critics thwacking through the slop—albeit with freelance machetes, on newfangled platforms.
—
Brittany Allen,
Literary Hub,
27 Apr. 2026
Max Weinberg sat at his set, thwacking his floor tom, while Lahav fiddled with his dials, stalked into the studio to unplug, replug, and then just physically move the microphone closer to the set, then to the side, and then farther away.
—
Peter Ames Carlin,
Rolling Stone,
13 Aug. 2025
Club World Cup viewers may remember the South American receiving the ball, skipping past an opponent, and thwacking in a long-range goal against Urawa Reds in June.
—
Henry Flynn,
Forbes.com,
12 Aug. 2025
With three classes of accommodation on board, passengers can sit at the windows of vintage cabins paneled with polished cherrywood and draped with blush pink silks as the train rumbles through rubber and palm plantations, giant leaves thwacking the sides.
—
Monisha Rajesh,
Condé Nast Traveler,
17 Jan. 2024
Brittany Allen,
Literary Hub,
27 Apr. 2026
Max Weinberg sat at his set, thwacking his floor tom, while Lahav fiddled with his dials, stalked into the studio to unplug, replug, and then just physically move the microphone closer to the set, then to the side, and then farther away.
—
Peter Ames Carlin,
Rolling Stone,
13 Aug. 2025
Club World Cup viewers may remember the South American receiving the ball, skipping past an opponent, and thwacking in a long-range goal against Urawa Reds in June.
—
Henry Flynn,
Forbes.com,
12 Aug. 2025
With three classes of accommodation on board, passengers can sit at the windows of vintage cabins paneled with polished cherrywood and draped with blush pink silks as the train rumbles through rubber and palm plantations, giant leaves thwacking the sides.
—
Monisha Rajesh,
Condé Nast Traveler,
17 Jan. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for thwacking
Verb
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Deputies responded to a report of a driver smacking his car into a guardrail in front of The Bridge Restaurant before driving away, according to a sheriff’s office news release.
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As the match got away from her in the second set and the Court Philippe-Chatrier crowd became increasingly hostile, Andreeva fully unraveled, smacking another ball towards the roof and asking members of her box to leave.
Verb
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The refs started handing out technical fouls like free samples, slapping Thomas and Hines-Allen with a double technical.
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Prosecutors dropped all charges against a bouncer for allegedly slapping a bar patron in February.
Verb
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Leveraged ETFs that aim to amplify SpaceX’s performance by providing double the returns (or losses) are already hitting the market.
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Ahead of the impending heat wave hitting the Pittsburgh area, Allegheny County officials have activated a Code Red Heat Advisory for Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday.
Verb
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And take the Exit Readiness Quiz to understand exactly where the gaps are before any business buyer comes knocking.
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Even 6 inches of moving water can pose a serious risk of knocking you off your feet.
Verb
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Cape Verde is not punching above its weight on heart.
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Court records reveal he was subsequently arrested for throwing a rock at people, and later for punching someone else.
Verb
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The Atlas Lions made the semi-finals of the 2022 World Cup, breaking through the glass ceiling that CAF teams had been banging their heads on for decades at the quarter-final stage.
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While the cameras were rolling, Spielberg would stand just out of frame with two wooden bats, banging them together to startle her.
Verb
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An on-and-off again rivalry during the primary The two men shared a similar message during the primary, slamming Democrats for mismanaging the state and calling for tax cuts and regulatory rollbacks.
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Also in 2007, Spencer was sentenced concurrently to seven years in prison for choking a woman, slamming her head to the ground, and robbing her of her cellphone, and for smashing into a woman's car and ransacking it, prosecutors said.
Verb
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Larry Hayes, 86, and Bill Moniz, 79, hit the tennis courts in Mountain View three to four times a week — whacking balls across the net as teammates for one to three hours a week.
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And the crowd clearly expected that pucks whacking the nets would be at a premium in this series, too.
Cite this Entry
“Thwacking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/thwacking. Accessed 4 Jul. 2026.
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