punches 1 of 3

verb

present tense third-person singular of punch
1
as in slaps
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 drills
to make a hole or series of holes in punch a ticket

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in drives
to urge, push, or force onward cowboys punching cattle

Synonyms & Similar Words

punches

2 of 3

noun (1)

plural of punch
as in blows
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

punches

3 of 3

noun (2)

plural of punch
as in punctures
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. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of punches
Verb
Then the officer punches him in the face twice and uses a Taser. — Shelley Bortz, CBS News, 15 Oct. 2026 Belgal is seen reversing and then driving out of the parking spot as one of the armed men punches the driver's side window and breaks the glass. — ABC News, 14 Oct. 2026 Separate video of the chaotic confrontation shows two showgirls fighting with a man and a woman, and one of the performers pulls the woman's hair and repeatedly punches her in the face and body. — Greg Wehner, FOXNews.com, 8 Oct. 2026 When Rocky refuses, Tommy punches Paulie, initiating a brutal street fight between Tommy and Rocky. — Derek Lawrence, Entertainment Weekly, 29 Sep. 2026 Derrick Henry punches it in from 3 yards out a play later to take the lead. — Jim Barnes, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 27 Sep. 2026 The kitchen, meanwhile, is the most impressive part of the house and really punches above its weight for such a compact model. — New Atlas, 22 Sep. 2026 The movie never punches for laughs, and the filmmakers are amazingly assured in their subtle style and their meticulous attention to detail. — Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 20 Sep. 2026 But there’s an irony here, in that the movie then punches down on Marjorie and her co-conspirators in turn. — Katie Rife, IndieWire, 14 Sep. 2026
Noun
And a fair fight is not just two fighters throwing the same punches at each other for 50 years. — ABC News, 25 Oct. 2026 In the opposite corner of the ring, Evloev is a freestyle fighter, getting a bunch of different kicks and punches to give him the edge. — Outkick, FOXNews.com, 24 Oct. 2026 Quite a few of those seeds were planted by Uncle Tim, my mom’s younger brother, who would enthusiastically play almost any game with his nieces and nephews … and never pulled any punches. — Sean McGowan, New York Times, 23 Oct. 2026 As the officer attempted to handcuff Bowman, the video shows Bowman move his hand toward the officer's hands before the punches. — Shelley Bortz, CBS News, 20 Oct. 2026 The farm offers a punch card to residents for $18 and is good for up to 14 punches or around 21 bags of debris. — Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 18 Oct. 2026 After landing several punches and kicks and taking his opponent to the ground multiple times, LaPenna eventually became fatigued and called for the match to be ended. — Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2026 Not a pushover but a practical-minded realist, the chef takes the punches, striking up a booze-smuggling deal with the Americans to keep the orphans living in his restaurant safe. — Beatrice Loayza, Variety, 13 Oct. 2026 However, this is a stellar opportunity to dig into excellent, authentic Thai dishes (no punches held on sour or spice), and the Thai Wok Omelet with blue crab and morning glory at breakfast is exceedingly memorable. — Condé Nast, Condé Nast Traveler, 7 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for punches
  1. slaps
  2. drills
  3. drives
  4. blows
  5. punctures
  6. hits
  7. pierces
  8. runs
Verb
  • Someone slaps a strip of medical tape across their lips, promises you deeper sleep, fewer snores and a sharper jawline by morning, then cuts to a dreamy sunrise shot.
    — Samantha Agate, Charlotte Observer, 24 Oct. 2026
  • As the child puts his hands up, Bible says Campbell slaps them away, then drags him off the field.
    — Shelley Bortz, CBS News, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of slaps
Verb
  • Ramiro Benavides, director of a middle school mariachi in the district, drills his students not only on how to play their instruments and sing, but also on how to bring a theatrical and dramatic flair to their performances.
    — Jessica Hill, Los Angeles Times, 13 Oct. 2026
  • Dewan is also filming The Rookie, so things are getting challenging as Val drills her on the technique — even on set between takes.
    — Katie Campione, Deadline, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of drills
Verb
  • This approach also drives innovation by ensuring new technologies address real challenges cotton growers are facing.
    — Angela Velasquez, Footwear News, 23 Oct. 2026
  • And more importantly, what is this anxiety so many men feel about their emotions that drives them to torturously invent bodies that bear little resemblance to the human form?
    — Jay Weissberg, Variety, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of drives
Noun
  • The company has suffered from several high-profile legal blows this year that have resulted in multibillion-dollar penalties.
    — Queenie Wong, Los Angeles Times, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Ukraine and Russia trading energy infrastructure blows aren't helping the situation either.
    — Leonie Kidd, CNBC, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of blows
Noun
  • The Cupertino writers are really cooking with this case, which once again sees multiple reversals of fortune, with Chatlike presenting airtight arguments that PSA punctures and vice versa.
    — Noel Murray, Vulture, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Officers arrived at Harrison's room at the Great Wolf Lodge and noticed bleeding cuts on her left wrist and superficial punctures on her neck, the criminal complaint said.
    — Tom Ignudo, CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of punctures
Verb
  • Night one had Ye, Brandy, and Mario delivering hits onstage, while night two had Snoop Dogg and Robin Thicke.
    — Mya Abraham, VIBE.com, 25 Oct. 2026
  • Anudike-Uzomah managed only 25 quarterback pressures and 11 quarterback hits in three NFL seasons.
    — Sam McDowell, Kansas City Star, 25 Oct. 2026
Definition of hits
Verb
  • Christmas tree pins have a tiered configuration that compresses rather than pierces the ground (a win for modern synthetic or Mondo tracks).
    — Stacia Datskovska, Footwear News, 10 Sep. 2026
  • An ice sculpture of a heart includes a tube through the ice arrow that pierces the heart.
    — Peter Larsen, Oc Register, 10 July 2026
Definition of pierces
Verb
  • Jeff Stotts, an athletic trainer who runs a site that tracks sports injuries, wrote that since 2005, just one player had sustained a torn labrum like Wallace’s and returned later that season.
    — Andrew Greif, NBC news, 29 Oct. 2026
  • Brodeur, 51, of Sanford, runs a consulting firm, Anchor Consulting LLC, and was the previous president and CEO of the Seminole County Chamber.
    — Martin E. Comas, The Orlando Sentinel, 29 Oct. 2026
Definition of runs

Browse Nearby Words

puncheons
punches
punches out
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Punches.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/punches. Accessed 29 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of shindig

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Why do we 'bury the lede?'

'Za' and 9 Other Words to Help You Win at SCRABBLE
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
different halloween monsters in silhouette
A Monstrous Vocab Quiz Words That Go Bump in the Night
See All