1
as in to slap
to deliver a blow to (someone or something) usually in a strong vigorous manner
after the man had punched the bartender for eighty-sixing him, bouncers stepped in and restrained him until the police could arrive
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
2
as in to drill
to make a hole or series of holes in
punch a ticket
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in impact
the quality of an utterance that provokes interest and produces an effect
the real punch of the speech came in its closing lines
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in vigor
active strength of body or mind
we're going to need a candidate with real punch if voters are ever going to get excited about this election
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in blow
a hard strike with a part of the body or an instrument
the poor palooka wasn't able to land a single punch on his opponent
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in puncture
a mark or small hole made by a pointed instrument
old computers used to get information by reading the punches on a series of cards
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Recent Examples of punch
Linh Tat, Orange County Register, 20 Jan. 2025
In 2018, an Eagles fan was arrested during the NFC divisional playoff game against the Falcons, for punching the horse of a Philadelphia police officer.
—Jackson Thompson, Fox News, 18 Jan. 2025
Joe Reid, Vulture, 22 Jan. 2025
But many likely to be affected still felt the orders like an emotional punch.
—Ruben Vives, Los Angeles Times, 22 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for punch 
Verb
Fists punched the air, guests exchanged hugs and congratulations, and handshakes were shared all around.
—Linh Tat, Orange County Register, 20 Jan. 2025
In 2018, an Eagles fan was arrested during the NFC divisional playoff game against the Falcons, for punching the horse of a Philadelphia police officer.
—Jackson Thompson, Fox News, 18 Jan. 2025
Noun
Then there are the returning behemoths, headlined by HBO’s one-two punch of The White Lotus season three in February and The Last of Us season two in April.
—Joe Reid, Vulture, 22 Jan. 2025
But many likely to be affected still felt the orders like an emotional punch.
—Ruben Vives, Los Angeles Times, 22 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for punch
Recent Examples of Synonyms for punch
Verb
-
Newsom greeted Trump with a handshake, and the president slapped him on the back.—
Ted Johnson,
Deadline,
25 Jan. 2025
-
President Trump has threatened to slap tariffs as high as 100% on Chinese goods if Beijing refuses to allow a sale of TikTok.—
Haleluya Hadero,
Chicago Tribune,
21 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
The Environment Trump's environmental policy platform mirrors Project 2025 in two main areas: drilling for fossil fuels and pulling out of the Paris Accords.—
Raul A. Reyes,
Newsweek,
22 Jan. 2025
-
The executive orders and memoranda take the first steps to fulfilling many of Trump’s promises from the campaign trail: withdrawing the US from the Paris Agreement, drilling more oil and natural gas, and repealing multiple Biden-era environmental directives and departments.—
Matt Reynolds,
WIRED,
21 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
When Dawn did not return home that night, friends and family drove around the school campus looking for her, the Honolulu Star-Bulletin reported at the time.—
Ray Sanchez,
CNN,
26 Jan. 2025
-
On the night of the fire, Ford persuaded Anderson to drive him and another man to the house.—
Mara Bovsun,
New York Daily News,
26 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
Barkley smacked them for 296 yards and four TDs in the regular season.—
Bill Reinhard,
New York Daily News,
23 Jan. 2025
-
During that period, Ichiro smacked 2,533 of his 3,089 Major League hits, ranking him 25th on MLB’s all-time hits list.—
Barry M. Bloom,
Sportico.com,
21 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
The gang, armed with rifles powerful enough to pierce an armored vehicle, is believed to have attacked from an alleyway along a winding dirt road between the embassy and the housing compound that isn’t always visible even when security measures are taken.—
Jacqueline Charles,
Miami Herald,
20 Jan. 2025
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This Ogden piercing fanatic deserves a follow simply for documenting his hilarious transition from TikTok to RedNote, complete with his first lip sync'ed Chinese love song.—
Erin Alberty,
Axios,
16 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
But Hutson is running the defensive corps, averaging 22:42 per night, which gives him a serious edge on Celebrini and Michkov for the campaign's best rookie.—
Yaakov Katz,
Newsweek,
17 Jan. 2025
-
Stop electing these opportunists, and please run candidates that care about our state and its citizens.—
Letters to the Editor,
Orlando Sentinel,
17 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
With snow and freezing weather hitting most states in the U.S. this past week, many have had to deal with icy and snowy commutes.—
Staff report,
Hartford Courant,
25 Jan. 2025
-
At her best, the 26-year-old’s powerful hitting from the baseline is borderline unstoppable, particularly on hard courts.—
George Ramsay,
CNN,
25 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
Timothée Chalamet playfully poked fun at himself during his Saturday Night Live monologue on Jan. 25.—
Mitchell Peters,
Billboard,
26 Jan. 2025
-
This time his timing was really good, as was that of Tanner Jeannot, who poked the puck lin Helenius’ direction.—
Jim Alexander,
Orange County Register,
23 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near punch
Cite this Entry
“Punch.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/punch. Accessed 31 Jan. 2025.
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