whack

[ wak, hwak ]

/ wæk, ʰwæk /

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See synonyms for: whack / whacked / whacking 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.

OTHER WORDS FOR whack

5 try, go, turn.

See synonyms for whack on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

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"Is" it time for a new quiz? "Are" you ready? Then prove your excellent skills on using "is" vs. "are."

Question 1 of 7

IS and ARE are both forms of which verb?

have

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Idioms about whack

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

Origin of whack

First recorded in 1710–20; originally dialect, Scots form of thwack; cf. whang², whittle

OTHER WORDS FROM whack

whack·er, noun

Words nearby whack

WGA, W. Ger., Wh, WHA, whachamacallit, whack, whacked, whacked-out, whacking, whack off, whacky

Other definitions for whack (2 of 2)

whack²

[ wak, hwak ]

/ wæk, ʰwæk /

noun, adjective

a variant of wack¹.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use whack in a sentence

So, on the one hand, it’s like they’re playing whack-a-mole with extremists without necessarily being willing to change the design of the social network that’s built to elevate extremism.
The member of Congress who’s trying to stop QAnon|Rebecca Heilweil|October 9, 2020|Vox
Yet the county still prohibits the sale of cannabis, meaning deputies are constantly engaged in a game of whack-a-mole with illegal shops.
Dems Want Control of the County – Here’s What They Say They’d Do With it|Jesse Marx|October 7, 2020|Voice of San Diego
Telepath’s name policy is meant to make sure the content moderation team can fully focus on spotting abuse rather than playing whack-a-mole with burner accounts.
A new social-media platform wants to enforce “kindness.” Can that ever work?|Tanya Basu|October 7, 2020|MIT Technology Review
A nicer environment could reset to normal the stress responses that had been thrown out of whack by early-life trauma, these studies showed.
Puberty may reboot the brain and behaviors|Esther Landhuis|August 27, 2020|Science News For Students

CFOs overwhelmingly think the valuation for stocks is out of whack, with 84% of respondents describing equities as overvalued.
Hurricane Laura and the Fed pack a one-two punch, pushing global stocks lower|Bernhard Warner|August 27, 2020|Fortune
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
Queeker brought the handle of his riding-whip whack down on the flank of his astonished horse, and flew at the fence.
The Floating Light of the Goodwin Sands|R.M. Ballantyne
When I'd read about a half a minute, he fetched the book a whack with his hand and knocked it across the house.
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Complete|Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens)
No; I take en whack de bill in two, en give half un it to you, en de yuther half to de yuther woman.
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Complete|Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens)
Then our trunks broke loose and went crashing back and forth at each other, whack, bang, with a vicious delight.
Gardens of the Caribbees, v. 1/2|Ida May Hill Starr
Tim gave the monster a whack with his paddle, which made it quickly sink again.
In the Wilds of Florida|W.H.G. Kingston

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 of whack

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

Other 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

OTHER WORDS FOR whack

Idioms about whack

Origin of whack

OTHER WORDS FROM whack

Words nearby whack

Other definitions for whack (2 of 2)

Words related to whack

How to use whack in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for whack

Derived forms of whack

Word Origin for whack

Other Idioms and Phrases with whack