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Synonyms

slap in the face

Idioms  

  1. A sharp rebuke or rebuff, as in Being criticized in front of my staff was a real slap in the face, or We thought it quite a slap in the face when they returned our letter unopened. The figurative use of this term, which can also refer to a literal blow, dates from the late 1800s.

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.

It turns your gift into a slap in the face with a wet fish.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 13, 2026

"What a slap in the face. That's a slap in the face," she added.

From Barron's • Feb. 10, 2026

I see it as a slap in the face.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 31, 2025

Dr Mario Donadi, a friend of another victim killed in the Air India crash, described the initial findings a "huge slap in the face" on BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

From BBC • Jul. 12, 2025

The ten-gallon bottles stacked in its bed are clearly visible, and are a let-them-drink-wine sort of slap in the face to an increasingly thirsty population.

From "Dry" by Neal Shusterman and Jarrod Shusterman

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.

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