thrash about

Idioms  

1. 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]

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Example Sentences

In “Monumental,” that truism is illustrated by this Canadian dance company, whose members thrash about and cavort in black-and-white work attire, channeling both cogs in the capitalist machine and animals trying to escape their cage.

From New York Times • Sep. 15, 2016

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

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

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