clobber
1 Americanverb (used with object)
noun
verb (used with object)
noun
verb
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to beat or batter
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to defeat utterly
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to criticize severely
noun
verb
Regionalisms
See clabber.
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
clobbersimple
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clobberssimple
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have clobberedperfect
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has clobberedperfect
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am clobberingprogressive
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are clobberingprogressive
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is clobberingprogressive
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have been clobberingperfect progressive
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has been clobberingperfect progressive
Past
-
clobberedsimple
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had clobberedperfect
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was clobberingprogressive
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were clobberingprogressive
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had been clobberingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of clobber1
An Americanism dating back to 1940–45; origin uncertain
Origin of clobber2
First recorded in 1875–80; of obscure origin; cf. clobber 3
Origin of clobber3
First recorded in 1850–55; earlier, “to mend, patch up (clothes or shoes)”; of obscure origin
Explanation
To clobber is to beat up or to defeat soundly in a game. You can say your favorite baseball team clobbers the competition if they win with a score of 10 to 0. When a boxer knocks out his adversary he clobbers him, and a bully clobbers his victim by punching him repeatedly. You can also clobber someone without shedding blood, as when you beat your dad in chess. The word clobber was originally World War II British air force slang, in the 1940s, and usually referred to aerial bombing.
Vocabulary lists containing clobber
Super Bowl Blowout: Epic Vocab for the Big Game
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American Football, 4th Quarter
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March: Book Two
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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:
Meet the next Asian film fighting style that will clobber Hollywood slap-happy just as Hong Kong wire-fu spawned “The Matrix” and Indonesia’s “The Raid” begot “John Wick.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 11, 2026
At least they don’t reach out to clobber nearby cars.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 18, 2026
Unlike past downturns, which tended to clobber every employer in a given industry, this slowdown has left pockets of hiring even in hard-hit sectors.
From Seattle Times ● Jan. 3, 2024
That’s a relief, particularly given how the movie tries to clobber you into submission.
From New York Times ● Jun. 14, 2023
“Well, clobber it! Point this way—now wait till he comes back, he doesn’t know this station’s still operational—just wait.”
From "Code Name Verity" by Elizabeth Wein
Popular media hasembraced the terms, using them when a snowstorm clobbers an area that usually gets little snow.
From Scientific American ● Nov. 11, 2022
That said, there are some things you can do to maintain good credit or to minimize the damage if an unexpected expense clobbers your budget.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 2, 2021
Mickelson’s not quite out of it, three back of Mattiace as he clobbers his drive on the 15th.
From Golf Digest ● Mar. 25, 2020
Malnutrition clobbers the immune system, leaving the victim more prone to infections and more likely to die from them.
From Science Magazine ● Apr. 6, 2017
That line of hers clobbers me over and over.
From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin
This has eased some of the regulatory risk that has clobbered tobacco shares since the U.S.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 9, 2026
But it kind of mattered, at least psychologically, and for pride, especially for Turkey, which was getting clobbered back home for its nonperformance in the Cup.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 26, 2026
Meanwhile, food prices have jumped by 40% in just a few years, which has clobbered people's finances.
From BBC ● Jun. 23, 2026
Even when software names were getting clobbered, retail traders stepped up and bought the dip, according to Vanda Research.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 4, 2026
Because she felt attacked, relentlessly clobbered, by loss.
From "Half of a Yellow Sun" by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie
Apple finally overthrew Nvidia to reclaim the title of the world’s largest company by market capitalization, underscoring the dramatic degree to which the iPhone maker’s stock is clobbering the broader technology universe.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 27, 2026
Ford’s secret project had an ambitious goal: to figure out how to make electric vehicles in the U.S. that could compete with the Chinese models clobbering competitors globally.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 5, 2026
Weatherald was in fine early touch, clobbering a series of boundaries from Carse whose radar was off, bowling too short and wide.
From Barron's ● Dec. 17, 2025
Hours later, Ohtani did not give an inch to the San Diego Padres, clobbering a first-inning home and adding two scorching doubles in an eventual 8-7, 11-inning defeat.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 13, 2024
We were halfway across when we heard the clobbering of hooves on the pavement and turned to catch a glimpse of the Vitamin Kid bearing down on us.
From "Bless Me, Ultima" by Rudolfo Anaya
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.
