as in to struggle
to devote serious and sustained effort
the design team has been banging away at that project for months
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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 bang away
Former staff leaked internal spats and embarrassing editorial ideas by the new leadership and pointed out that many top leaders were banging away at stories that were likely below their pay grade.
—
Max Tani, semafor.com, 9 June 2025
As several drummers banged away, Vázquez danced near a table and teammates clapped along to the music, including a spirited effort from Royce Lewis.
—Dan Hayes, The Athletic, 16 Aug. 2024
One of the roadies came out to bang away on the piano, the notes more felt than heard, part of the noise.
—Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 29 Sep. 2024
The manager demonstrated how to use the rock hammers, and then people got to banging away, trying to find opals in the rock.
—Marla Jo Fisher, Orange County Register, 31 Jan. 2024
Norton remembers banging away on his dad’s Smith Corona typewriter in the den.
—Cynthia Billhartz Gregorian, Kansas City Star, 31 Jan. 2024
There’s John in his apartment in New York City, banging away at his piano, doing a little demo.
—Lars Brandle, Billboard, 2 Nov. 2023
There’s John in his apartment in New York City, banging away at his piano, doing a little demo.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 1 Nov. 2023
Show business in all its forms was the family norm for Cassidy, who as a kid often wrote songs while banging away on neighbor Rosemary Clooney’s piano as her kids played basketball with their cousin George Clooney.
—Alicia Dennis, Peoplemag, 22 June 2023
Max Tani, semafor.com, 9 June 2025
As several drummers banged away, Vázquez danced near a table and teammates clapped along to the music, including a spirited effort from Royce Lewis.
—Dan Hayes, The Athletic, 16 Aug. 2024
One of the roadies came out to bang away on the piano, the notes more felt than heard, part of the noise.
—Rob Sheffield, Rolling Stone, 29 Sep. 2024
The manager demonstrated how to use the rock hammers, and then people got to banging away, trying to find opals in the rock.
—Marla Jo Fisher, Orange County Register, 31 Jan. 2024
Norton remembers banging away on his dad’s Smith Corona typewriter in the den.
—Cynthia Billhartz Gregorian, Kansas City Star, 31 Jan. 2024
There’s John in his apartment in New York City, banging away at his piano, doing a little demo.
—Lars Brandle, Billboard, 2 Nov. 2023
There’s John in his apartment in New York City, banging away at his piano, doing a little demo.
—Chris Willman, Variety, 1 Nov. 2023
Show business in all its forms was the family norm for Cassidy, who as a kid often wrote songs while banging away on neighbor Rosemary Clooney’s piano as her kids played basketball with their cousin George Clooney.
—Alicia Dennis, Peoplemag, 22 June 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bang away
Verb
-
Crisler said Milton struggles with alcohol addiction and was sober working for four months at a Chipotle restaurant, but a relapse resulted in the April 25 break-in.—
Quinlan Bentley,
The Enquirer,
3 Aug. 2025
-
In 1995, Anderson released her autobiography My Life in Heels, which detailed her relationship with Reynolds and her struggles to keep her family together.—
Stephanie Wenger,
People.com,
3 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
During this time, a period spanning six decades, several generations of enslaved people labored on the Perrin plantations, working around the clock to enhance his fortune.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
29 July 2025
-
Royals starting pitcher Kris Bubic labored through 2 2/3 innings against the Guardians.—
Jaylon Thompson,
Kansas City Star,
27 July 2025
Verb
-
Park Chan Uk, who is VP of live entertainment for CJ ENM, said KCON strives to curate different genres and artist types.—
Abigail Lee,
Variety,
2 Aug. 2025
-
Post-Quantum Cryptography (PQC) strives to provide encryption algorithms that are resilient to quantum attacks.—
Chuck Brooks,
Forbes.com,
1 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
The start-up, which is today announcing a $9 million funding round, says its agentic artificial intelligence (AI) tools can help leading market research firms work more quickly and cost-effectively than ever before.—
David Prosser,
Forbes.com,
31 July 2025
-
Kaine and Paul have worked together on legislative efforts to stop Trump's tariffs.—
Olivia Evans,
The Courier-Journal,
31 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Bang away.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bang%20away. Accessed 7 Aug. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share