as in slap
a hard strike with a part of the body or an instrument
the impatient toddler got a swat on his wrist for stepping into the street by himself
Synonyms & Similar Words
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as in to smack
to deliver a blow to (someone or something) usually in a strong vigorous manner
didn't sleep a wink all night because she was too busy swatting mosquitoes
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of swat
Aaron Portzline, New York Times, 17 Oct. 2025
In a demonstration to military clients, Julian uses bright scarlet lasers to render Ares and an intimidating swat truck in his private hangar.
—Peter Debruge, Variety, 7 Oct. 2025
Emily Adams, Hartford Courant, 18 Mar. 2026
Viel caught Dach in Anaheim’s end three minutes in after the Montreal forward swatted at the puck with his arm but missed.
—Los Angeles Times, 16 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for swat
Noun
In the third, a gloved swat by Cole Sillinger sent the puck skidding across the Avalanche’s goal mouth to the stick of Damon Severson.
—Aaron Portzline, New York Times, 17 Oct. 2025
In a demonstration to military clients, Julian uses bright scarlet lasers to render Ares and an intimidating swat truck in his private hangar.
—Peter Debruge, Variety, 7 Oct. 2025
Verb
The All-American sophomore didn’t even look at the basket, volleying the ball back to Quinonez, and Quinonez instantly swatted it back at Strong as the defender between them faced whiplash trying to get in position.
—Emily Adams, Hartford Courant, 18 Mar. 2026
Viel caught Dach in Anaheim’s end three minutes in after the Montreal forward swatted at the puck with his arm but missed.
—Los Angeles Times, 16 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for swat
Recent Examples of Synonyms for swat
Noun
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Leonard extended his 20-point streak to 49 straight games with 27 points on 9-of-19 shooting, welcoming hand slaps from teammates after hitting his second 3-pointer late in the game.—
Janis Carr,
Oc Register,
26 Mar. 2026
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Emma Peschel beat the first-period buzzer with a slap shot to make it 4-0 and Sara Swiderski sent a shot from the blue line that deflected into the goal in the third.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
20 Mar. 2026
Verb
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On Wednesday, the Braves had been in an 0-for-14 slump with runners in scoring position until Baldwin smacked a two-out single to left with the bases loaded in the second.—
Chad Bishop,
AJC.com,
1 Apr. 2026
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Other incidents over the years have seen fans grab at Nikki Bella or actually smacking Alex Bliss on the backside as Nia Jax was carrying her over her shoulder from a previous segment.—
Matthew Couden,
MSNBC Newsweek,
31 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Moments later, a bass thump sounded in the distance.—
Nabih Bulos,
Los Angeles Times,
27 Mar. 2026
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The experimental jet, part of NASA’s Quesst mission, is designed to fly faster than the speed of sound while producing only a soft sonic thump instead of a disruptive boom.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
21 Mar. 2026
Verb
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On this postcard-perfect corner of Canada’s northeastern province of Newfoundland and Labrador that’s slammed by wind and waves, cod-fishing communities hold on to their distinctive settler history.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
2 Apr. 2026
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On Sunday, the president of the American Federation of Government Employees slammed Congress for leaving Washington for the Easter/Passover break without reaching an agreement on funding DHS.—
Corky Siemaszko,
NBC news,
1 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Virginia made one last push, cutting TCU’s lead to 65-55, but the Horned Frogs quickly delivered the knockout blow as Miles knocked down a 3 and Suarez hit sophomore center Clara Silva for a layup to end Virginia’s hopes of another upset.—
Steven Johnson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
29 Mar. 2026
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The Israeli military later said raw materials are processed for enrichment at the Yazd plant and the strike was a major blow to Iran’s nuclear program.—
Farnoush Amiri,
Chicago Tribune,
28 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Remember, as little as 6 inches of moving water can knock you off your feet.—
KANSAS CITY STAR WEATHER BOT,
Kansas City Star,
1 Apr. 2026
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About 2 minutes and 40 seconds into the fight, Grasso drilled Barber in the head with a left hook, knocking her out.—
Kyle Newman,
Denver Post,
31 Mar. 2026
Noun
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For the past 20 days, Weinberg, a farmer and doula, has been living between the thud of Hezbollah missiles and the crack of Israeli artillery.—
Lior Soroka,
Washington Post,
20 Mar. 2026
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That polish doesn’t stop it from being seriously grating at times, though, especially when some of its jokes land with a thud.—
Eric Vilas-Boas,
Vulture,
18 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Crow-Armstrong had support from his team during Friday’s news conference, where first baseman Michael Busch, manager Craig Counsell, hitting coach Dustin Kelly, assistant hitting coach John Mallee and staff assistant AJ Lewis took in the scene.—
Meghan Montemurro,
Chicago Tribune,
28 Mar. 2026
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Alcantara left the mound with a lead, courtesy of the bottom of Miami’s lineup stringing together hits in the second.—
Jordan McPherson,
Miami Herald,
28 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Swat.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/swat. Accessed 2 Apr. 2026.
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