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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Shannon scored 29 points in the second half, hitting five of seven 3-point shots.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
9 Apr. 2026
-
Dodgers hitting coach Robert Van Scoyoc said Pages has become one of the team’s most regular users of the Trajekt machine – and Skenes is a frequent visitor.—
Bill Plunkett,
Oc Register,
9 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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Bridgewater Police Officer Marc-Stephen Hutchins then arrived and started knocking on the door as well.—
Penny Kmitt,
CBS News,
10 Apr. 2026
-
The Stockyards is knocking it out of the park, the Near Southside is growing with hospital and hotel development, and new construction is under way in the West 7th District, Taft said.—
Harrison Mantas,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
9 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
-
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
-
Their show is a high-energy mix of friendly interviews with tech titans, industry gossip, and celebrations of funding rounds and other successes that involve banging a giant gong.—
Shannon Bond,
NPR,
8 Apr. 2026
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Then, on a force play, Contreras slid hard into second, banging into shortstop David Hamilton’s left knee with his cleats and tearing his pants.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
7 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Matt is carrying a stick and whacking flowers.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
31 Mar. 2026
-
Tien and Chang plan to be on the ground in Houston and out whacking balls come Monday.—
Dale Robertson,
Houston Chronicle,
29 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Zapping.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/zapping. Accessed 16 Apr. 2026.
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