thrashing

[ thrash-ing ]

/ ˈθræʃ ɪŋ /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR thrashing ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a flogging; whipping.

the act of a person or thing that thrashes.

a pile or quantity of threshed grain or the grain threshed at one time.

Nearby words

thrash, thrash about, thrash metal, thrash out, thrasher, thrashing, thrasonical, thrasonically, thrasybulus, thrave, thraw

Origin of thrashing

Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; see origin at thrash, -ing¹

Definition for thrashing (2 of 2)

thrash

[ thrash ]

/ θræʃ /

verb (used with object)

to beat soundly in punishment; flog.

to defeat thoroughly: The home team thrashed the visitors.

Nautical. to force (a close-hauled sailing ship under heavy canvas) against a strong wind or sea.

thresh.

verb (used without object)

to toss, or plunge about.

Nautical. to make way against the wind, tide, etc.; beat.

thresh(defs 3, 4).

noun

an act or instance of thrashing; beating; blow.

thresh(def 5).

Swimming. the upward and downward movement of the legs, as in the crawl.

British Slang. a party, usually with drinks.

Verb Phrases

thrash out/over, to talk over thoroughly and vigorously in order to reach a decision, conclusion, or understanding; discuss exhaustively.Also thresh out/over.

Origin of thrash

before 900; Middle English thrasshen, variant of thresshen to thresh

SYNONYMS FOR thrash

1 maul, drub.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR thrash ON THESAURUS.COM

Related formsun·thrashed, adjectivewell-thrashed, adjective

Can be confusedthrash thresh

Synonym study

1. See beat.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for thrashing

At times she looks demonic—screaming and thrashing like an overacted Lady Macbeth.
Hallucinating Away a Heroin Addiction|Abby Haglage|May 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Her thrashing, her dark visions, her frightened gasps will continue for the next 36 hours.
Hallucinating Away a Heroin Addiction|Abby Haglage|May 4, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But despite MacKenzie's thrashing, it's been well-reviewed by critics and other Amazon commenters.
Jeff Bezos’s Wife Rips New Book on Her Husband|William O’Connor|November 5, 2013|DAILY BEAST
They beat up several journalists, though two particularly intrepid ones escaped the thrashing by feigning death.
Mumbai on Edge With Shiv Sena Founder Bal Thackeray Ill|Dilip D’Souza|November 16, 2012|DAILY BEAST

And given her thrashing in 2008, Lauer asked, should the GOP nominee pick a more seasoned running mate than she?
Sarah Palin Hosts ‘Today’ and Auditions for a Broader Role|Nick Summers|April 3, 2012|DAILY BEAST
The whole platoon was thrashing through the grass in their direction and the Rumi were gone as quickly as they had come.
Narakan Rifles, About Face!|Jan Smith
When I used to lick you at school, who ever would have thought that I was thrashing a sucking statesman?
The History of Samuel Titmarsh|William Makepeace Thackeray
He told the man to come up on deck and he would give him a thrashing.
St. Nicholas Magazine for Boys and Girls, Vol. 5, Nov 1877-Nov 1878|Various
Alexander's presence made him, somehow, feel foolish, as if his thrashing were less of an embarrassment than its cause.
A Pagan of the Hills|Charles Neville Buck
There was a man once upon a time that I felt like thrashing—for much of your reason.
Rest Harrow|Maurice Hewlett

British Dictionary definitions for thrashing (1 of 2)

thrashing

/ (ˈθræʃɪŋ) /

noun

a physical assault; flogging

a convincing defeata 5–1 thrashing

British Dictionary definitions for thrashing (2 of 2)

thrash

/ (θræʃ) /

verb

(tr) to beat soundly, as with a whip or stick

(tr) to defeat totally; overwhelm

(intr) to beat or plunge about in a wild manner

(intr) to move the legs up and down in the water, as in certain swimming strokes

to sail (a boat) against the wind or tide or (of a boat) to sail in this way

another word for thresh

noun

the act of thrashing; blow; beating

informal a party or similar social gathering

Word Origin for thrash

Old English threscan; related to Old High German dreskan, Old Norse thriskja

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for thrashing

thrash

1580s, "to separate grains from wheat, etc., by beating," dialectal variant of threshen (see thresh). Sense of "beat (someone) with (or as if with) a flail" is first recorded c.1600. Meaning "to make wild movements like those of a flail or whip" is attested from 1846. Related: Thrashed; thrashing. Type of fast heavy metal music first called by this name 1982.

thrashing

noun

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of thrashing

Definition for thrashing (2 of 2)

thrash

verb (used with object)

verb (used without object)

noun

Verb Phrases

Origin of thrash

Synonym study

Examples from the Web for thrashing

British Dictionary definitions for thrashing (1 of 2)

thrashing

noun

British Dictionary definitions for thrashing (2 of 2)

thrash

verb

noun

Word Origin for thrash

Word Origin and History for thrashing

thrash