ping
Americanverb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
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Computers. to send an echo-request packet to (an IP address) and use the echo reply to determine whether another computer on the network is operational and the speed at which the data is being transferred.
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to make contact with (someone) by sending a brief electronic message, as a text message.
The design team should ping marketing to set up a meeting next week.
Ping me when you arrive, and I’ll meet you at the door.
noun
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a pinging sound.
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an infrasonic or ultrasonic sound wave created by sonar in echolocation.
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an acoustic signal transmitted to indicate a location.
Rescue crews were able to follow the ping and locate the flight recorder.
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Computers. an echo-request and echo-reply protocol that tests a connection online or in a network by sending a packet to a host IP address and measuring the round-trip speed of data transfer.
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one of the possible sounds made by an electronic or mobile device to signal the receipt of data, as a phone or text message.
noun
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a short high-pitched resonant sound, as of a bullet striking metal or a sonar echo
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computing a system for testing whether internet systems are responding and how long in milliseconds it takes them to respond
verb
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(intr) to make such a noise
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(tr) computing to send a test message to (a computer or server) in order to check whether it is responding or how long it takes it to respond
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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pingsimple
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pingssimple
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have pingedperfect
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has pingedperfect
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am pingingprogressive
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are pingingprogressive
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is pingingprogressive
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have been pingingperfect progressive
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has been pingingperfect progressive
Past
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pingedsimple
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had pingedperfect
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was pingingprogressive
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were pingingprogressive
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had been pingingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of ping
First recorded in 1850–55; imitative
Explanation
A ping is a sharp, high-pitched, somewhat musical sound. Quickly tapping a spoon against a crystal glass makes a ping. If you ping someone, you contact them via computer or phone, which might ping when the message comes through. The word ping is onomatopoeic, or imitative — in other words, it sounds just like its meaning. Things that might ping include your electronic alarm clock, some video games, a stone against your car's windshield, and the timer on your microwave. In the 1800s, a ping was primarily the sound a bullet made as it hit something — today it's just as likely to mean "a message sent from one computer to another."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
It was a rare, unexplained, glitch in a system that blares out warnings of incoming attacks multiple times a day through loudspeaker announcements on the street and metro, and the collective ping of phone notifications.
From Barron's ● Jul. 9, 2026
Not long after the game ended, he heard the ping of a text message.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 17, 2026
Lu - the 64-year-old president of the American Changle Association, a Chinese community group - argued he was simply trying to help people renew driver's licenses and facilitate social activities like mahjong and ping pong.
From BBC ● May 16, 2026
Gaming performance is solid with excellent ping rates on most servers.
From Salon ● Feb. 11, 2026
A few minutes later there’s another ping, louder this time.
From "Everything, Everything" by Nicola Yoon
In the future, they could pay to be the apps that Siri pings to complete tasks.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 8, 2026
The soundtrack is a series of bleeps and pings as fresh data is fed to dozens of men in T-shirts and hoodies hunched over joysticks and keyboards.
From BBC ● Apr. 27, 2026
If the phrasing pings on your internal generative AI radar, you’re not alone.
From Barron's ● Apr. 14, 2026
Not yogurt eaten in a fugue state between Slack pings.
From Salon ● Feb. 19, 2026
Your top-down system is heavily invested, and it gets reinforced by the bottom-up pings alerting you to what are, in a sense, plot updates.
From "A Deadly Wandering: A Mystery, a Landmark Investigation, and the Astonishing Science of Attention in the Digital Age" by Matt Richtel
Kim said Rinderknecht’s phone first pinged in a small gully near where they believe the fire originated.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 24, 2026
If Uber Technologies wants to be pinged by Siri for ride requests, for instance, it will likely have to pay Apple a hefty fee.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 5, 2026
Canadian women's skip Rachel Holman was pinged for a double touch.
From BBC ● Feb. 16, 2026
Malinin was 17 when Boitano’s figure skater group chat pinged with a video of the world’s first quad axel.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 7, 2026
The register pinged, and a sign saying ten dollars shot up.
From "Crash" by Jerry Spinelli
The penalty count against the visitors ramped up, with referee James Doleman pinging England nine times after the interval.
From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026
Traders and investors are pinging banks about how to get into suites or the lower bowl.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 5, 2026
When his phone finally sprang to life, it was pinging with three years' worth of messages, an inventory of loss: news of colleagues who had died, friends asking whether he was still alive.
From BBC ● Apr. 14, 2026
My phone is pinging near constantly with alerts from Signal groups that exist to defend and support our community.
From Slate ● Jan. 25, 2026
“He’s scared,” Kuda said, pinging another pebble at the kennel.
From "The Ear, the Eye, and the Arm" by Nancy Farmer
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
