as in slaps
to deliver a blow to (someone or something) usually in a strong vigorous manner
an overhead branch suddenly fell and bonked him on the head
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for bonks
Verb
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Anderson slaps his hit down the right field line, just fair.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
19 Apr. 2026 -
At the end of the night, during the bows, Butler slaps the guys playing her two antagonists gently on their butts, a gesture that would have jarred in most stagings but fully in keeping with the inclusive, humanistic vibe of this production.—
Chris Jones,
Chicago Tribune,
7 Apr. 2026
Verb
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At that house, no one answered a Statesman reporter’s knocks on Monday, but Davidson told the Statesman that his family owns the whole lot.—
Idaho Statesman,
Idaho Statesman,
28 Apr. 2026
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For one thing, precedent says that Waddle’s production this fall should, health permitting (knocks on wood), just about double whatever numbers Cooper puts out as a rookie for the J-E-T-S in 2026.—
Sean Keeler,
Denver Post,
25 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The boy smacks him in the mouth and then immediately starts crying.—
Samantha Agate,
Charlotte Observer,
28 Apr. 2026
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An attack rears its ugly head, and the security team smacks it down.—
Neil J. Rubenking,
PC Magazine,
27 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Teal'c takes out some frustrations on an unlucky grunt who bangs him with a door at the start of every time loop, and O'Neill gets to (temporarily) sample the will-they side of his will-they-won't-they relationship with Carter.—
Daryl Baxter,
Space.com,
14 Apr. 2026
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Another bangs his head against the wall after expressing suicidal thoughts.—
Morgan Lee,
Los Angeles Times,
8 Mar. 2026
Verb
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The nonprofit holds a 26% stake, plus warrants if OpenAI hits certain valuation targets.—
Deepa Seetharaman,
USA Today,
29 Apr. 2026
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Searchlight is in development on Lottery, a Permut Presentations drama about a young man with Down syndrome who, after winning the lottery, flees his estranged mother and hits the road with a charming new friend who has ulterior motives of her own.—
Anthony D'Alessandro,
Deadline,
29 Apr. 2026
Verb
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With runners on the corners, Martinez whacks a two-run, RBI double to tie it at five.—
Zoe Collins Rath,
Austin American Statesman,
27 Mar. 2026
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Then little Holly Wheeler and her 10-year-old friends, including the Season 5 favorite Derek (Jake Connelly), all swarm into the basement and take over the D&D table in a passing of the torch that basically whacks the audience over our collective heads.—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
31 Dec. 2025
Verb
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In other words, automatic registration slams the courthouse door on women, but not on men, because registration is its own injury.—
Wendy Murphy,
Boston Herald,
27 Apr. 2026
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In the standard picture, particles gain energy at a termination shock, where the pulsar wind slams into surrounding material.—
Rupendra Brahambhatt,
Interesting Engineering,
26 Apr. 2026
Verb
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The catcher receives the signal, checks his wrist band, then punches the command into his PitchCom.—
Justice delos Santos,
Mercury News,
24 Apr. 2026
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Aeration can be done with a core aerator that punches shallow holes in the surface, or with a shovel or a rototiller that turns the soil more deeply.—
Mary Marlowe Leverette,
Southern Living,
23 Apr. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Bonks.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bonks. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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