1
as in bang
a loud explosive sound
a clap of thunder that woke the whole house up
Synonyms & Similar Words
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2
as in thump
a hard strike with a part of the body or an instrument
a sharp clap to the head of the disrespectful youth
Synonyms & Similar Words
as in to slap
to deliver a blow to (someone or something) usually in a strong vigorous manner
clapped him on the back as a friendly gesture
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of clap
Sharareh Drury, People.com, 14 Feb. 2025
The nature of Favre's slow clap drew backlash from some with pro-LGBTQ beliefs on social media.
—Jackson Thompson, Fox News, 12 Jan. 2025
John Shipley, Twin Cities, 5 Apr. 2025
After attending to Watkins for more than a minute, the Trojans trainers, carefully cradling her right leg, lifted the nation’s second-leading scorer completely off the ground and carried her off the court to a mixture of groans and clapping from the USC home crowd.
—Kevin Dotson, CNN, 25 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for clap
Noun
Jenner, dressed in a sparkling black floor-length gown, claps along with the rest of the theater and touches the Dune star’s cheek.
—Sharareh Drury, People.com, 14 Feb. 2025
The nature of Favre's slow clap drew backlash from some with pro-LGBTQ beliefs on social media.
—Jackson Thompson, Fox News, 12 Jan. 2025
Verb
The third baseman clapped his hands and looked at the Twins dugout before rounding the bases.
—John Shipley, Twin Cities, 5 Apr. 2025
After attending to Watkins for more than a minute, the Trojans trainers, carefully cradling her right leg, lifted the nation’s second-leading scorer completely off the ground and carried her off the court to a mixture of groans and clapping from the USC home crowd.
—Kevin Dotson, CNN, 25 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for clap
Recent Examples of Synonyms for clap
Noun
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Marsai Martin’s chignon and a Josephine Baker-esque side bang meant business, closing out the week with professional elegance.—
India Espy-Jones,
Essence,
14 Apr. 2025
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Those events will fling material in all directions, triggering the same double bang in the other white dwarf.—
Paul Smaglik,
Discover Magazine,
4 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Rami Sinno is crouched beside a filing cabinet, wrestling a beach-ball sized disc out of a box, when a dull thump echoes around his laboratory.—
Billy Perrigo,
Time,
2 Apr. 2025
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Then the silence was broken by the loud thump of Olive’s .38/40.—
Horace R. Hinkley,
Outdoor Life,
19 Mar. 2025
Verb
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That proved a terrible bet for the Ukrainians, since the likelihood of Putin entering peace talks when tens of thousands of Ukrainian soldiers were occupying a piece of Mother Russia was about as low as the S&P 500 doubling in value after Trump slapped tariffs on everybody.—
Daniel DePetris,
Chicago Tribune,
8 Apr. 2025
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The conversation between the Beijing administration and the EU chief takes place after Washington last Wednesday slapped China and the EU with reciprocal tariffs of 34% and 20%, respectively.—
Dan Mangan,Kevin Breuninger,John Melloy,Ruxandra Iordache,Christina Wilkie,Erin Doherty,
CNBC,
8 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Trump’s protectionist approach to global trade, however, threatens to stymie the boom that has powered Vietnam’s economic rise for the last decade.—
Stephanie Yang,
Los Angeles Times,
13 Apr. 2025
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New York City helicopter crash latest: Authorities search for answers after 6 killed The main fuselage, including the cockpit and cabin, the forward portion of the tail boom, the horizontal stabilizer finlets and the vertical fin have all been recovered, according to the agency.—
Riley Hoffman,
ABC News,
12 Apr. 2025
Noun
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The endorsement was a boon to Mr. Cuomo, 67, and a blow to his rivals.—
Nicholas Fandos,
New York Times,
14 Apr. 2025
-
The result is just tit-for-tat subversion and another blow to America’s supposedly nonpartisan system of justice.—
The Editorial Board,
Chicago Tribune,
14 Apr. 2025
Verb
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Pennsylvania’s drift to the right was the fourth largest of the seven, smack in the middle.—
Chris Stirewalt,
The Hill,
4 Apr. 2025
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Still, the Yankees managed to make things interesting in the ninth inning, as Volpe smacked a three-run homer off Arizona lefty A.J. Puk to cut the deficit to one.—
Gary Phillips,
New York Daily News,
3 Apr. 2025
Noun
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That three-run blast headlined a 10-run surge by the Marlins.—
Steve Gorten,
Miami Herald,
13 Apr. 2025
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The system is impossible to jam with blasts of radio waves, a common counter-measure in the field.—
Eleanor Beardsley,
NPR,
12 Apr. 2025
Noun
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That the episode doesn’t engage with weightier questions around representation and A.I. only makes its bittersweet ending, in which Brandy is gifted another A.I. prototype of Dorothy, land with a thud.—
Abby Monteil,
Them.,
17 Apr. 2025
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In the new court filing, phone records show Mortensen tried calling the other four roommates – but got no response – around the time when security camera from a residence close to the home picked up at 4:17 a.m. distorted audio of voices, a whimper, followed by a loud thud, and a barking dog.—
Lauren del Valle,
CNN,
7 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Clap.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/clap. Accessed 21 Apr. 2025.
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