thrash about

Idioms

Also, thrash around. Move wildly or violently, as in He thrashed about all night, unable to sleep, or The fish thrashed around on the dock, so Meg threw it back in the water. [Mid-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.

Twitter users thrash about in endless conflict with one another; comments sections roil and boil with invective.

From The Guardian • Dec. 14, 2015

Firstly, sharks mistake swimmers for their usual prey such as seals, especially if they thrash about in water and wear shiny objects that resemble fish skin.

From BBC • Jun. 8, 2015

Then his jockey, Rosie Napravnik, invoked the adage jockeys must summon at a microsecond when others might go mad: better to ease up and finish last than to thrash about and seek the unattainable.

From Washington Post • May 9, 2015

Doctors who use the treatment say they do so because it’s effective, and note it no longer causes patients to thrash about because they are fully anesthetized and given a muscle relaxant.

From Washington Times • Dec. 14, 2014

To flounder is to stumble awkwardly or thrash about like a fish out of water.

From "Woe Is I" by Patricia T. O'Conner

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023