as in hitting
to deliver a blow to (someone or something) usually in a strong vigorous manner
zapped the annoying bug with a swatter
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Recent Examples of zapping
Lasers that focus on zapping drones out of the sky.
—
Lesley Stahl, CBS News, 15 Mar. 2026
Porzingis was limited to 42 games a year ago for the Boston Celtics in part because of an energy-zapping illness.
—Sam Gordon, San Francisco Chronicle, 27 Feb. 2026
Salicylic acid, a beta hydroxy acid (BHA) lauded for its exfoliating and anti-inflammatory properties, has long been the MVP of breakout control, but today’s best salicylic acid serums go well beyond zapping zits.
—Sarah Han, Allure, 27 Jan. 2026
Even with Slack zapping the number of emails sent, most people still waste so much time sifting through their inboxes.
—semafor.com, 9 Jan. 2026
For all of Earth history, lightning has been zapping the surface, today at the rate of 100 strikes a second.
—Peter Brannen, Big Think, 28 Aug. 2025
Team it with a broad spectrum, high factor sunscreen to further protect your skin against collagen-zapping UV rays.
—Jacqueline Kilikita, Refinery29, 17 Oct. 2024
Lesley Stahl, CBS News, 15 Mar. 2026
Porzingis was limited to 42 games a year ago for the Boston Celtics in part because of an energy-zapping illness.
—Sam Gordon, San Francisco Chronicle, 27 Feb. 2026
Salicylic acid, a beta hydroxy acid (BHA) lauded for its exfoliating and anti-inflammatory properties, has long been the MVP of breakout control, but today’s best salicylic acid serums go well beyond zapping zits.
—Sarah Han, Allure, 27 Jan. 2026
Even with Slack zapping the number of emails sent, most people still waste so much time sifting through their inboxes.
—semafor.com, 9 Jan. 2026
For all of Earth history, lightning has been zapping the surface, today at the rate of 100 strikes a second.
—Peter Brannen, Big Think, 28 Aug. 2025
Team it with a broad spectrum, high factor sunscreen to further protect your skin against collagen-zapping UV rays.
—Jacqueline Kilikita, Refinery29, 17 Oct. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for zapping
Verb
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Read was accused of hitting O'Keefe with her SUV during a blizzard after a night of heavy drinking and leaving him to die in the snow outside of a Canton home.—
Matt Schooley,
CBS News,
17 Apr. 2026
-
The Lebanese Health Ministry said Israel struck three teams of paramedics Wednesday in southern Lebanon, first hitting one team and then two more that rushed to help.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
16 Apr. 2026
Verb
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But there’s more to at-home extensions than slapping them on the crown of your head and heading out the door.—
Hunter Lacey,
Allure,
9 Apr. 2026
-
That means going beyond slapping a flag on packaging in November.—
Peter Su,
Rolling Stone,
1 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Berfield — who played Reese, Dewey's older brother — watches the tween get picked on by a group of bullies before turning and smacking them with his bag.—
Meredith Wilshere,
PEOPLE,
11 Apr. 2026
-
During the eclipse, as the moon was cloaked in darkness, the crew members spotted flashes of light from meteoroids smacking into the lunar surface.—
Denise Chow,
NBC news,
11 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Crews will be knocking door to door, assessing the damage in hopes of getting the state and federal emergency declarations for Ann Arbor, which could help residents pay for repairs.—
Jack Springgate,
CBS News,
17 Apr. 2026
-
An Idaho Statesman reporter was unable to reach Ricks for comment by calling a number believed to belong to Ricks and by visiting the property several times, knocking on his door and leaving notes.—
Idaho Statesman,
Idaho Statesman,
16 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Earlier on Tuesday, the rapper was accused in a new lawsuit of punching a man two years ago at the Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood.—
Charisma Madarang,
Rolling Stone,
15 Apr. 2026
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Surveillance video shown to CBS News Philadelphia shows the suspect repeatedly punching Ballou.—
Tom Dougherty,
CBS News,
15 Apr. 2026
Verb
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On one side, people are slamming Bieber’s performance, describing it as lazy and underwhelming, despite his reportedly high paycheck for the gig.—
Carly Thomas,
HollywoodReporter,
12 Apr. 2026
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In security camera footage of her killing posted on the Department of Homeland Security's X feed, the man can be seen repeatedly slamming the hammer into a black vehicle parked in front of the gas station.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
11 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Stand on the corner banging pots and pans.—
Tyler Estep,
AJC.com,
15 Apr. 2026
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The Canucks took a 2-1 lead on a power play 52 seconds into the middle frame, banging home the loose puck off Brock Boeser’s shot past Kuemper for his 22nd.—
Daily News,
Daily News,
15 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Ultimately, the Yanks would spend 2 hours and 45 minutes on the court, meaning 2023 champion Tiafoe, who had prevailed in two previous marathons, wound up whacking balls for eight-plus hours in his ultimately futile bid for reach a fourth consecutive final here.—
Dale Robertson,
Houston Chronicle,
4 Apr. 2026
-
Matt is carrying a stick and whacking flowers.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
31 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Zapping.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/zapping. Accessed 20 Apr. 2026.
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