as in defeat
failure to win a contest
took a serious trouncing during the first game but came back to win the next two
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in whipping
to defeat by a large margin
our candidate trounced her opponent in the election, winning with 76% of the vote
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Recent Examples of trouncing
Andrew Knoll, Daily News, 27 Feb. 2026
That blend of players yielded the team’s first playoff victory, a trouncing of the Minnesota Vikings in the wake of a turbulent week of wildfires in Los Angeles.
—Adam Grosbard, Oc Register, 9 Jan. 2026
Creative tension with old-school Republicans in the first term and then genuine fears about his own reelection following the trouncing the GOP got in 2018 produced a far more popular version of Trumpism than the current undiluted dose.
—Chris Stirewalt, The Hill, 12 Dec. 2025
Muller’s team has won seven of those encounters, including the 2014 World Cup Final and an 8-2 trouncing of Barcelona that was the club’s worst loss in more than half a century.
—Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 5 Dec. 2025
LaFleur’s team is 1-0 in the division thanks to its season-opening trouncing of the Lions and is sixth in the NFC playoff picture.
—Matt Schneidman, New York Times, 19 Nov. 2025
Isiah Pacheco also put together 57 yards and one touchdown in the Chiefs' trouncing of the Raiders.
—James Brizuela, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Oct. 2025
With the Chiefs appearing more vulnerable in a season coming off a Super Bowl trouncing, Buffalo—which opens its 2025 campaign Sunday night at home against another formidable foe, the Baltimore Ravens—is poised for a breakthrough.
—Sean Gregory, Time, 6 Sep. 2025
Fred Katz, New York Times, 13 Feb. 2026
The Seahawks were the top seed in the NFC, going 14-3 in the competitive NFC West before trouncing the division rival San Francisco 49ers and edging out the division rival Los Angeles Rams in the playoffs.
—Ryan Bort, Rolling Stone, 8 Feb. 2026
So what is the path forward if trouncing the supply lines won’t produce results?
—Sterling Elliott, Chicago Tribune, 1 Feb. 2026
The stock, which has jumped 16% year to date, is our third-best performer in these early days of 2026, trouncing the S & P 500′s gain of just 1% this year.
—Zev Fima, CNBC, 25 Jan. 2026
In the last year, Walmart shares have risen 27%, double the S&P 500’s growth and trouncing Amazon’s 1% increase.
—Phil Wahba, Fortune, 21 Jan. 2026
Montrose has crushed its Front Range foes in the playoffs, beating Frederick 55-6 in the first round and trouncing Monarch 56-27 in the quarters.
—Kyle Newman, Denver Post, 28 Nov. 2025
The doctrine died a surer death with the 1989 invasion of Panama to remove its rogue leader, Manuel Noriega, convicted of drug-running and guilty of trouncing his country’s democracy.
—Alan McPherson, The Conversation, 2 Nov. 2025
With the Dragons trouncing Byron Nelson and Trinity, the gap between them and the rest of the competition is incredibly wide.
—Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 27 Sep. 2025
Noun
Kings organist Dieter Ruehle was feeling a bit cheeky during Thursday’s 8-1 trouncing by the Edmonton Oilers.
—Andrew Knoll, Daily News, 27 Feb. 2026
That blend of players yielded the team’s first playoff victory, a trouncing of the Minnesota Vikings in the wake of a turbulent week of wildfires in Los Angeles.
—Adam Grosbard, Oc Register, 9 Jan. 2026
Creative tension with old-school Republicans in the first term and then genuine fears about his own reelection following the trouncing the GOP got in 2018 produced a far more popular version of Trumpism than the current undiluted dose.
—Chris Stirewalt, The Hill, 12 Dec. 2025
Muller’s team has won seven of those encounters, including the 2014 World Cup Final and an 8-2 trouncing of Barcelona that was the club’s worst loss in more than half a century.
—Michelle Kaufman, Miami Herald, 5 Dec. 2025
LaFleur’s team is 1-0 in the division thanks to its season-opening trouncing of the Lions and is sixth in the NFC playoff picture.
—Matt Schneidman, New York Times, 19 Nov. 2025
Isiah Pacheco also put together 57 yards and one touchdown in the Chiefs' trouncing of the Raiders.
—James Brizuela, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Oct. 2025
With the Chiefs appearing more vulnerable in a season coming off a Super Bowl trouncing, Buffalo—which opens its 2025 campaign Sunday night at home against another formidable foe, the Baltimore Ravens—is poised for a breakthrough.
—Sean Gregory, Time, 6 Sep. 2025
Verb
With his team trouncing the Philadelphia 76ers and Alvarado already on fire from 3-point range, the New York Knicks’ newest guard turned to his greatest hits.
—Fred Katz, New York Times, 13 Feb. 2026
The Seahawks were the top seed in the NFC, going 14-3 in the competitive NFC West before trouncing the division rival San Francisco 49ers and edging out the division rival Los Angeles Rams in the playoffs.
—Ryan Bort, Rolling Stone, 8 Feb. 2026
So what is the path forward if trouncing the supply lines won’t produce results?
—Sterling Elliott, Chicago Tribune, 1 Feb. 2026
The stock, which has jumped 16% year to date, is our third-best performer in these early days of 2026, trouncing the S & P 500′s gain of just 1% this year.
—Zev Fima, CNBC, 25 Jan. 2026
In the last year, Walmart shares have risen 27%, double the S&P 500’s growth and trouncing Amazon’s 1% increase.
—Phil Wahba, Fortune, 21 Jan. 2026
Montrose has crushed its Front Range foes in the playoffs, beating Frederick 55-6 in the first round and trouncing Monarch 56-27 in the quarters.
—Kyle Newman, Denver Post, 28 Nov. 2025
The doctrine died a surer death with the 1989 invasion of Panama to remove its rogue leader, Manuel Noriega, convicted of drug-running and guilty of trouncing his country’s democracy.
—Alan McPherson, The Conversation, 2 Nov. 2025
With the Dragons trouncing Byron Nelson and Trinity, the gap between them and the rest of the competition is incredibly wide.
—Charles Baggarly, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 27 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for trouncing
Noun
-
That love was evident in abundance following the online racial abuse directed at Saka, Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho following the Euro 2020 final defeat by Italy.—
Aleks Klosok,
CNN Money,
26 Feb. 2026
-
The rest all won at least 40 games before their 20th defeat.—
Zack Cox,
Boston Herald,
26 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Taylor also weighed in on keeping her cool on stage when things go wrong, such as embracing her wig flying off and whipping it around her head, the proper form for double-dutching and having patience in Hollywood.—
Gil Kaufman,
Billboard,
26 Feb. 2026
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Though both storms are similar — with a major storm system lingering over the region for over a day and whipping the region with merciless hurricane-level winds, driving inch after inch of wet snow — what made the 1978 storm so devastating was the apparent suddenness of its arrival.—
Doyle Rice,
USA Today,
24 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Alleged criminal activity, including violence, drug issues, a deadly beating, and prostitution at Annie's, for decades boiled over to Cincinnati City Council in 2018.—
David Ferrara,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
1 Mar. 2026
-
For days, Williams had maintained hope that Maliek would survive the brutal beating in a Queens shelter that left him with a blown right pupil, fractured pelvis, lacerations to his liver and brain damage.—
Julian Roberts-Grmela,
New York Daily News,
26 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
The rehabilitation itself will be expensive, and its success will depend on wooing private investors and overcoming a half-decade of adverse publicity.—
Miami Herald Archives,
Miami Herald,
27 Feb. 2026
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His Ducks rallied to beat two-time defending conference champion Edmonton in their return from the Olympic break, overcoming a pair of two-goal deficits and another one-goal deficit during their frenetic four-goal third period.—
Greg Beacham,
Chicago Tribune,
26 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
Orlando was coming off a 2-1 loss to the New York Red Bulls.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
2 Mar. 2026
-
Ferris, who pitched 1-2/3 scoreless innings in his second Cactus League start Saturday in the Dodgers’ 7-6 split-squad loss to the Texas Rangers at Surprise Stadium, noticed the contrast going from the Cubs to the Dodgers.—
Jack Vita,
Los Angeles Times,
2 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Eventually, half a dozen people are able to heave the thrashing manatees onto the boat, sliding the mother and calf up into the open stern and the slippery deck.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
27 Feb. 2026
-
After thrashing Real España by five goals on the Honduran club’s home field last week, the Los Angeles Football Club was nearly guaranteed to advance to the next stage of the continental tournament.—
Josh Gross,
Daily News,
25 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Orlando City went down a man in the 88th minute when Colin Guske was handed a second yellow card for a foul on Messi, who two minutes later scored the fourth Miami goal, burying his free kick to complete the brace.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
2 Mar. 2026
-
Spread out the roots and plant the hosta divisions at the same depth they were originally planted, without burying the crown.—
Karen Brewer Grossman,
Southern Living,
26 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Meanwhile, the Assad regime was bombing and gassing civilians.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
24 Feb. 2026
-
The United States inserted itself in the war by bombing Iranian nuclear sites.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
22 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Trouncing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/trouncing. Accessed 4 Mar. 2026.
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