ping
Americanverb (used without object)
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pings,
present (3rd person singular)
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pinged,
past participle, past
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pinging
present participle
verb (used with object)
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pings,
present (3rd person singular)
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pinged,
past participle, past
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pinging
present participle
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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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pings
plural
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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:
You’re trying to wrap up a work call while bagging your kid’s outgrown clothes when a ping comes in from a parent chat — soccer registration just opened and spots are filling fast.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026
Could Pavlovian ping alerts be fueling a collective attention deficit disorder?
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 13, 2026
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
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
I drag the laptop onto my thighs and ping Rabia before I lose my courage.
From "A Place at the Table" by Saadia Faruqi and Laura Shovan
Jets scrambled on the second occasion, but the lights and their radar pings disappeared when the planes got close.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 28, 2026
This is the kind of charge that pings around the internet but usually goes nowhere.
From Slate ● Jul. 22, 2026
Prosecutors said the victim pressed his cell’s emergency call button, which turned on a green light outside his door and sent a series of pings to notify the guard on duty in the living area.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 20, 2026
Facebook pings me with “memories”: photo carousels of my adult daughter and me on a beach or posing for goofy selfies.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 30, 2026
“I hope that was a joke. This is Camp_____.” He made a sound that was a series of sonar pings and hisses.
From "The Mark of Athena" by Rick Riordan
Kerstetter further testified that Walters’ phone had pinged in Comanche only one other time during the preceding 11 months, about two weeks before the break-in.
From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026
Brophy is a hiker, and her Apple watch last pinged her at a trail head near the pond, according to the nonprofit support group.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
I’ve worked for many, and I know the distinct frustration of being pinged with, “Just checking in!” less than an hour after being asked how something is “coming along.”
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 21, 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
Whenever my dad’s BlackBerry pinged, I was positive that was the newsflash.
From "Ungifted" by Gordon Korman
The penalty count against the visitors ramped up, with referee James Doleman pinging England nine times after the interval.
From BBC ● Jul. 4, 2026
Cellphone pinging: Investigators, particularly those with FBI technical units, will use geo-fencing to scour the cell towers around Guthrie’s home for cellphone users.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 24, 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
“There are times when my phone is pinging all the time…. I would say over 100 pings during a day,” he said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 11, 2026
They made hollow pinging sounds when they rolled against one another.
From "Endangered" by Eliot Schrefer
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.
