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
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
Upload speeds were generally stable, though ping times increased significantly on distant servers — reaching over 500 ms in Australia — which could introduce noticeable lag during gaming or video calls.
From Salon ● Mar. 21, 2026
“Hello, my name is . . . Duane. I was won— . . . dering if you . . . might stop hop— . . . ping for a mo— . . . ment, please?”
From "The Very, Very Far North" by Dan Bar-el
He trades the plush G-funk popular in L.A. for a style more common in New York—all hard surfaces and rigid drums, with a barely-there melody that pings like sonar.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
His phone app pings; he puts on his protective mask and heads out wearily to fight crime.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 30, 2026
This is the kind of charge that pings around the internet but usually goes nowhere.
From Slate ● Jul. 22, 2026
No phone, no laptop, no smartwatch, no ring, no pings.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 23, 2026
A gentle rain splattered the silo and played tiny pings against the tin roof.
From "Dactyl Hill Squad" by Daniel José Older
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
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
He was abroad in March this year when his phone pinged to say he no longer had access to the Kia Connect app.
From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2026
Phones pinged with constant texts from friends and relatives watching the news around the world.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 28, 2026
He hadn’t slept well either; the residual anxiety had pinged inside his skull.
From "Anger Is a Gift" by Mark Oshiro
Executives are urging their staff to send messages in public Slack channels, rather than privately pinging colleagues.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026
Similarly, he said, where a stolen device is pinging its location at an address, an officer will be required to knock on the door.
From BBC ● Aug. 3, 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
Reactors like the ones at Fukushima Daiichi increase the likelihood that those pinging neutrons will hit another uranium 235 nucleus by slowing them down.
From "Meltdown" by Deirdre Langeland
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
