How to Use counterpunch in a Sentence

counterpunch

noun
  • With their backs against the wall, Saints threw one more counterpunch.
    — Clark Fahrenthold, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 May 2025
  • Curt dodges the Brit’s awkward blow and drops him with a counterpunch.
    — Chris Klimek, Vulture, 26 Jan. 2024
  • But Iowa needs a counterpunch in this game or it will get stopped at the point of attack.
    — Scott Dochterman, ajc, 17 Nov. 2017
  • As any chef will tell you, pickled elements bring a sweet-and-sour counterpunch to a plate.
    — Jeff Gordinier, Esquire, 12 July 2017
  • There was no punch-counterpunch to this game like Monday night against the Ravens.
    — Dan Labbe, cleveland, 20 Dec. 2020
  • The best way to deliver a counterpunch against the Axis was from the air.
    — Ron Grossman, Chicago Tribune, 7 May 2023
  • This series has been about as evenly matched as could be, with the two teams trading punches and counterpunches game to game.
    — James Mirtle, New York Times, 29 Apr. 2025
  • But Butler and the Heat had a counterpunch for every Celtics jab.
    — Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 28 May 2022
  • In recent years, the Premier League has proved fertile ground for teams who play on the counterpunch.
    — Rory Smith, New York Times, 6 Apr. 2018
  • But the lack of an equal counterpunch from Iran is also raising questions about its strategy.
    — Scott Peterson, The Christian Science Monitor, 18 Jan. 2024
  • So far, the Democrat has landed some counterpunches.
    — Helen Lewis, The Atlantic, 5 June 2026
  • While the Current pushed for a winner, the Courage ended up landing the quick counterpunch.
    — Daniel Sperry, Kansas City Star, 27 Apr. 2025
  • This same condiment provides acidic counterpunch to a whole tilapia, offered grilled or fried, its earthy flesh easily parting from a grid of bones.
    — Hadley Tomicki, latimes.com, 12 July 2019
  • But for the first time in this series, the Florida Panthers were able to push back with a counterpunch that worked.
    — James Mirtle, New York Times, 10 May 2025
  • Both teams kept delivering counterpunches in the final three innings of the game.
    — Betsy Helfand, Twin Cities, 24 July 2019
  • Their strategy starts with a counterpunch, often over cable news or social media.
    — Dan Alexander, Forbes.com, 18 May 2026
  • The Nerds get sucked through the straw, adding a sweet counterpunch to the alcohol, and the fish are tasty though chewy, inebriated souls.
    — Anna Caplan, star-telegram, 4 Oct. 2017
  • Griffin’s Miami counterpunch didn’t come from nowhere.
    — Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 6 May 2026
  • After the Hornets scored two minutes into the third to take their first lead of the game, Jupiter answered back with a massive counterpunch.
    — Wells Dusenbury, Sun-Sentinel.com, 13 May 2018
  • This response was a bold, unfiltered counterpunch meant to discredit the lawsuit, take aim at Buzbee, and flip the narrative.
    — Molly McPherson, Forbes, 9 Dec. 2024
  • Ukraine has long telegraphed its intention to wield a counterpunch in the south, leading the Russians to shift thousands of troops there from Ukraine’s east.
    — James Marson, WSJ, 29 Aug. 2022
  • And 2) Baylor will start with Fenwick providing a counterpunch.
    — oregonlive, 15 Aug. 2021
  • Against a high-scoring and well-regarded Hawkeyes team, Whalen said her team had to be better at absorbing the kind of counterpunch a good team will throw at them.
    — Kent Youngblood, Star Tribune, 9 Jan. 2021
  • Trailing 17 points with 13 minutes remaining, the Bucs threw a counterpunch.
    — Ben Goessling, Star Tribune, 6 Feb. 2021
  • The Iranian counterpunch this time consisted chiefly of attacks against its Gulf neighbors, most of whom had declined to get involved in this war.
    — Eliot A. Cohen, The Atlantic, 23 Mar. 2026
  • Instead, Seattle will likely view Smith and the passing game as diverse enough to have counterpunches for everything.
    — Michael-Shawn Dugar, The Athletic, 7 Aug. 2024
  • Jaxson Hayes was out of the postseason rotation last year and is now an important counterpunch behind Ayton.
    — Los Angeles Times, 9 May 2026
  • Three kilometers from the end of the stage, as fans set off flares beside them, Pogacar flipped the script with a surprising counterpunch and won the stage, gaining 24 seconds back.
    — Kevin Draper, New York Times, 23 July 2023
  • The Red Sox extended the lead to 6-0 in the third thanks to Duran’s heroics, but the Guardians had a counterpunch up their sleeve.
    — Mac Cerullo, Boston Herald, 27 Apr. 2025
  • Might feel differently if the Beavers had a solid counterpunch in Jermar Jefferson, but as of mid-summer, it’s not proven.
    — oregonlive, 12 July 2021

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'counterpunch.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Last Updated: