as in giant
unusually large
harvested a whacking number of zucchini from the garden
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in extremely
to a great degree
the clown wore a whacking big pair of shoes
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in smacking
to deliver a blow to (someone or something) usually in a strong vigorous manner
whacked the vending machine to get the candy bar to fall
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in murdering
slang
to put to death deliberately
without a second thought the mob boss had them whacked
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of whacking
Michael Russo, New York Times, 28 Jan. 2026
The reptile reacts to being picked up by flicking its meaty tail back and forth, whacking a few of the deputies.
—Kelli Bender, PEOPLE, 5 Dec. 2025
The robot showcased exemplary skills with the bat, whacking the ball precisely in a rally of over 100 shots with human-like agility.
—Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 9 Sep. 2025
New York put the screws to its division rival on Tuesday, whacking nine home runs to cruise to a 13-3 victory.
—Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Aug. 2025
In the ensuing melee, an overly aggressive security guard makes the mistake of whacking Hutch’s young daughter on the head.
—Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 13 Aug. 2025
Verb
Then Eriksson Ek helped create Spurgeon’s tying goal by dominating Kaiser in front and whacking at two rebound attempts, with the puck bouncing right to Spurgeon by the post.
—Michael Russo, New York Times, 28 Jan. 2026
The reptile reacts to being picked up by flicking its meaty tail back and forth, whacking a few of the deputies.
—Kelli Bender, PEOPLE, 5 Dec. 2025
The robot showcased exemplary skills with the bat, whacking the ball precisely in a rally of over 100 shots with human-like agility.
—Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 9 Sep. 2025
New York put the screws to its division rival on Tuesday, whacking nine home runs to cruise to a 13-3 victory.
—Jackson Roberts, MSNBC Newsweek, 20 Aug. 2025
In the ensuing melee, an overly aggressive security guard makes the mistake of whacking Hutch’s young daughter on the head.
—Frank Scheck, HollywoodReporter, 13 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for whacking
Adjective
-
The mild temperatures, the melt, and gravity conspired to destroy the back window of a car when a giant icicle came crashing through it.—
Ross Guidotti,
CBS News,
11 Feb. 2026
-
Investors in this study include everything from giant companies controlling thousands of houses to folks with a small collection of rentals to short-term rental operators to people with a second home.—
Jonathan Lansner,
Oc Register,
11 Feb. 2026
Adverb
-
Perhaps, on extremely long timescales, those heavier elements will sink to the center of the core, producing an inert center that slows the rate of fusion even further.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
6 Feb. 2026
-
Even in hockey – a sport that is extremely popular around the world – there are terms used by commentators or pundits that you might not be accustomed to hearing if not a regular to the sport.—
Ben Morse,
CNN Money,
5 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Shepard attached the head of a 6-iron golf club to his sample collecting tool and was recorded smacking a couple golf balls across the lunar landscape.—
Arizona Republic,
AZCentral.com,
6 Feb. 2026
-
In his defense, Barnett took the stand to say there was no murder plot and that Thomas extorted him for the money using physical violence – knocking out his teeth, injured his left shoulder, and smacking his private parts.—
Sydney Pereira,
Miami Herald,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Though Ronald Heath was charged with murdering Hammett, prosecutors ended up dropping the prosecution when Kenneth changed his mind and decided not to testify against his brother again, saying his life had been threatened.—
Amanda Lee Myers,
USA Today,
10 Feb. 2026
-
In 2025 Erin Patterson, a 51-year-old Australian woman, was sentenced to life in prison for murdering three relatives and trying to kill another by intentionally feeding them a beef Wellington that included poisonous fungi in the ingredients.—
Karen Garcia,
Los Angeles Times,
8 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
And also there’s a huge music staff with a lot of know-how and really, really deep knowledge and contacts and relationships in that space.—
Ben Smith,
semafor.com,
14 Feb. 2026
-
Caudle told The Associated Press in a recent interview that his vision is to deploy smaller, newer ships when possible instead of consistently turning to huge aircraft carriers.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
14 Feb. 2026
Adverb
-
If that keeps in line, that’s a -48%, which is pretty damn good for a genre movie.—
Anthony D'Alessandro,
Deadline,
7 Feb. 2026
-
Sure, the book is better than the movie, but the movie is pretty damn good.—
Emily Temple,
Literary Hub,
2 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Sometimes the figure tries and fails to stand up, slapping itself with floppy, almost boneless limbs.—
Zachary Fine,
New Yorker,
9 Feb. 2026
-
Part of the answer seems to be more brands willing to make early commitments that actually matter (and not just slapping logos on things) but investing in the media infrastructure that lets fans watch and follow women’s sports in the first place.—
Kimberly Wilson,
Essence,
26 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Harry Jacobs, who was recently named head of the office's criminal division, was also involved in the prosecution of Vance Boelter, the man accused of assassinating former Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and her husband Mark.—
Sarah N. Lynch,
CBS News,
5 Feb. 2026
-
Days later, Trump, much to the surprise of even his own advisers, responded by assassinating Iran’s top military commander, Qassem Soleimani, in Iraq.—
Karim Sadjadpour,
The Atlantic,
31 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Whacking.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/whacking. Accessed 16 Feb. 2026.
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