whack

[ hwak, wak ]

/ ʰwæk, wæk /

|||

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR whack ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to strike with a smart, resounding blow or blows.

Slang. to divide into or take in shares (often followed by up): Whack the loot between us two.

verb (used without object)

to strike a smart, resounding blow or blows.

noun

a smart, resounding blow: a whack with his hand.

Informal. a trial or attempt: to take a whack at a job.

Slang. a portion or share.

Verb Phrases

whack off,

to cut off or separate with a blow: The cook whacked off the fish's head.
Slang: Vulgar. to masturbate.

whack out, Slang. to produce quickly or, sometimes, carelessly: She whacks out a short story every week or so.

Nearby words

wh question, wh-question, wh-word, wha, whachamacallit, whack, whack off, whacked, whacked out, whacked-out, whacking

Idioms

out of whack, Informal. out of order or alignment; not in proper condition.

Origin of whack

1710–20; orig. dial., Scots form of thwack; cf. whang², whittle

SYNONYMS FOR whack

5 try, go, turn.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR whack ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

whack·er, noun

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

Examples from the Web for whack

Say the Democrats: When all else fails, whack them on Social Security.
Hooray for Liberal Fear-Mongering!|Michael Tomasky|October 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But this new flavor of rhetorical flimflam is still pretty, well, whack.
What Did You Do in the Targeted Action, Daddy?|John McWhorter|September 12, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Why is he dialing down the humor and dialing up the moralizing, throwing his immaculate comedic balance out of whack?
Why I Fell in Love With ‘Louie’ Again, Artistic Pretensions and All|Andrew Romano|June 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Apple is working on an automatic alert system that rings a doctor if blood sugar or blood pressure gets out of whack.
Apple Health App Plays to Our Laziness—and It’s Brilliant|Gregory Ferenstein|June 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST

First, Herz argues, our ability to weigh risk is out of whack, because CrossFit is more like a sport than a Pilates class.
Inside the Cult of CrossFit|William O’Connor|May 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
I just want to get one whack at him for taking our wood and those doughnuts and cakes of chocolate.
Ned, Bob and Jerry on the Firing Line|Clarence Young
Then facing one another, suddenly advance and bring their breasts together with a whack.
Stanley in Africa|James P. Boyd
Real man-size eruption would have wiped the whole thing off the map, first whack.
The Mystery|Stewart Edward White and Samuel Hopkins Adams
Well, there's a little more packin' to do; then I thought I'd go down to that parsonage and take a whack at the cobwebs.
Keziah Coffin|Joseph C. Lincoln
Sile, you put that dipper in that milk agin, an' I'll whack you till your head'll swim!
Other Main-Travelled Roads|Hamlin Garland

British Dictionary definitions for whack

whack

/ (wæk) /

verb (tr)

to strike with a sharp resounding blow

(usually passive) British informal to exhaust completely

(tr; usu foll by in or on) informal to put something on to or into something else with force or abandonwhack on some sunscreen

noun

(tr) US slang to murderif you were out of line you got whacked

a sharp resounding blow or the noise made by such a blow

informal a share or portion

informal a try or attempt (esp in the phrase have a whack at)

out of whack informal out of order; unbalancedthe whole system is out of whack

interjection

an exclamation imitating the noise of a sharp resounding blow

Derived Forms

whacker, noun

Word Origin for whack

C18: perhaps a variant of thwack, ultimately of imitative origin

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

Idioms and Phrases with whack

whack

In addition to the idioms beginning with whack

whacked out
whack off

also see:

have a crack (whack) at
out of kilter (whack)

whack

verb (used with object)

verb (used without object)

noun

Verb Phrases

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Idioms

Origin of whack

SYNONYMS FOR whack

Related forms

Examples from the Web for whack

British Dictionary definitions for whack

whack

verb (tr)

noun

interjection

Derived Forms

Word Origin for whack

Idioms and Phrases with whack

whack