pack a punch
Idioms-
Also, pack a wallop.
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Be capable of a forceful blow; also, deliver a forceful blow. For example, Knowing Bob could pack a wicked punch, they were careful not to anger him , or She swung her handbag, really packing a wallop . [ Colloquial ; c. 1920]
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Have a powerful effect, as in That vodka martini packed a wallop . Thomas Wolfe had this figurative usage in a letter (c. 1938): “I think my play, The House , will pack a punch.”
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.
That means that even if an ECB hike under conventional economics wouldn’t make too much of a dent to activity, the act of signaling will pack a punch.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 11, 2026
Not all premium purchases pack a punch, of course.
From BBC ● Apr. 21, 2026
A fast-moving atmospheric river is heading toward California this week and could pack a punch, with the possibility of periods of heavy rain, and a risk of flooding and debris flows in recently burned areas.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 11, 2025
"Mast cells pack a punch, when activated by IgE antibodies they can be said to explode and release inflammatory factors into the skin -- this is what causes itching and hives."
From Science Daily ● May 21, 2024
And he seems to pack a punch up his sleeve.
From Poor Man's Rock by Johnson, Frank Tenney
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.
