pummeling 1 of 2

noun

variants also pummelling
as in thrashing

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pummeling

2 of 2

verb

variants also pummelling
present participle of pummel
as in pounding
to strike repeatedly pummeled the mugger with her fists until help arrived

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of pummeling
Noun
Trump’s critics, especially in Israel, worry that the agreement effectively allows Iran to repair a proxy force diminished by months of Israeli pummeling. — David Goldman, CNN Money, 26 June 2026 Men In Blazers Reigning European champions Spain finally looked like tournament favorites, with teenage star Lamine Yamal leading it to a 4-0 pummeling of Saudi Arabia. — David Hickey, NBC news, 22 June 2026 As violent as these bouts get, fighters agree to honor the rules, even mid-pummeling. — Bhumika Tharoor, The Atlantic, 9 June 2026 This spiritual, emotional, and physical reset is a million miles away from the hormone pummeling of current weight-loss drugs, and the aughts’ detox ethos. — Jane Alexander, Condé Nast Traveler, 22 May 2026 The increasingly gruesome pummelling continues, cross-cutting with Cassie’s discussion with Naz (Jack Topalian), calmly eating pie on the couch, about what this means to her, and how her wedding was supposed to be the best day of her life. — Chris O'Falt, IndieWire, 28 Apr. 2026 Of course, Flextail didn't curl up, back into a corner and submit to a pummeling, counterpunching with its own tiny 1-oz inflator just a couple months later. — New Atlas, 20 Apr. 2026 On April 8, 2025, Wrobleski endured an eight-run pummeling by the Washington Nationals and was immediately sent down to triple-A Oklahoma City. — Maddie Lee, Los Angeles Times, 14 Apr. 2026 Stout, bluesy guitar and a pummeling rhythm lead to McBryde turning in a ferocious, fearless vocal, singing about a litany of vices and urges that stay steeped her bloodline. — Jessica Nicholson, Billboard, 23 Feb. 2026
Verb
Instead of pummeling out of the sky in a ballistic reentry, the lifting body landed sort of like an airplane. — Josh Dinner, Space.com, 16 Aug. 2026 Her scrolled embroideries have since been described as tirades, rants, and screeds—no horses or cables, just the language pummeling the eye. — Literary Hub, 5 Aug. 2026 Ukraine is ratcheting up the tempo of drone strikes pummeling Crimea, the peninsula annexed by Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2014. — Brady Africk, Washington Post, 20 July 2026 That work was far from done when a new round of storms began pummeling the state this week, triggering catastrophic flash floods in some of the same areas devastated in 2025. — ABC News, 18 July 2026 About 21,000 customers lost electricity when storms swept through the Carolinas Friday afternoon, prompting severe thunderstorm warnings and pummeling the Charlotte area. — Joe Marusak, Charlotte Observer, 11 July 2026 Behested payments make an excellent target for pummeling the presidential contender. — Los Angeles Times, 20 June 2026 Vargas was among a group of three men being sought for pummeling the cab parked at 36th St and Seventh Ave. — Colin Mixson, New York Daily News, 16 June 2026 With a pummelling rhythm and howling guitar, the new song from fata morgana makes a desperate race against the doom loop. — Harry Tafoya, Pitchfork, 10 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pummeling
  1. thrashing
  2. pounding
  3. hammering
  4. licking
  5. bashing
  6. lashing
  7. bludgeoning
  8. battering
Noun
  • Kluivert notched a hat-trick in the 10-1 thrashing of Italy’s Genoa, with Scott, Unal (two goals each) and David Brooks scoring too.
    — Chris Weatherspoon, New York Times, 14 Aug. 2026
  • The Blågult had started so well, mind you, with a 5-1 thrashing of Tunisia.
    — Ben Church, CNN Money, 30 June 2026
Definition of thrashing
Verb
  • Then, in the meditation hall, our cheery host suddenly turned serious and began pounding on a 350-year-old drum from a samurai castle used for marking the beginning of chores.
    — Pico Iyer, Condé Nast Traveler, 17 Aug. 2026
  • Lala is no longer a hurricane, but the tropical storm is drenching Hawaii with sideways rain, hurricane-force gusts and pounding surf, flooding rivers and triggering mudslides.
    — Alexa St. John, Los Angeles Times, 16 Aug. 2026
Definition of pounding
Noun
  • This song features a kick drum throughout, and the boosted bass takes it from background timekeeping to foreground hammering.
    — Mark Knapp, PC Magazine, 10 Aug. 2026
  • The Middle East faces chaotic power shifts as Iran, despite taking a hammering, refuses to back down, though its regional influence is expected to wane.
    — Melik Kaylan, Forbes.com, 28 July 2026
Definition of hammering
Verb
  • Dubiously sourced accounts followed of Australians who died after drinking toad tea and a man supposedly being imprisoned in South America on toad-licking charges.
    — Kimon de Greef, Longreads, 4 Aug. 2026
  • There’s truly nothing like licking that paper lid, then shoveling that tiny tongue depressor into a child-sized serving of vanilla or chocolate ice cream.
    — Tara Massouleh McCay, Southern Living, 2 Aug. 2026
Definition of licking
Noun
  • Again, helicopter parents aren’t new, and there’s a risk that this gets turned into even more Gen Z bashing.
    — Frank Landymore, Futurism, 6 Aug. 2026
  • Finally, how did Jason’s bashing of kitchen items compare to Evel Dick’s and Josh’s?
    — Dalton Ross, Entertainment Weekly, 31 July 2026
Definition of bashing
Verb
  • Powerful winds and lashing rain flipped over a truck in Zhejiang’s Wenzhou, a video posted on TikTok on Sunday showed.
    — Reuters, NBC news, 10 Aug. 2026
  • The president has responded to the MAGA criticism by lashing out repeatedly at dissenters, prompting Greene – once a top Trump supporter – not to run for reelection and Massie to lose his primary.
    — Zac Anderson, USA Today, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of lashing
Noun
  • This one, Eimers went on, was unlikely to do that, because of the bludgeoning of the post and the placement of the bolts.
    — Charles Bethea, New Yorker, 20 July 2026
  • Already, this bludgeoning has become visible in insurance markets.
    — Justin Worland, Time, 18 July 2026
Definition of bludgeoning
Verb
  • Esteban Ribovics proved to be too much for the Brazilian legend, battering him to a TKO loss and into retirement.
    — Brian Mazique, Forbes.com, 16 Aug. 2026
  • Record-breaking temperatures are battering a continent that’s less equipped to deal with the shock than other parts of the world.
    — Bloomberg, Fortune, 11 Aug. 2026
Definition of battering

Browse Nearby Words

pummeled
pummeling
pummels
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Cite this Entry

“Pummeling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pummeling. Accessed 18 Aug. 2026.

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