as in thump
a hard strike with a part of the body or an instrument he got a biff in the noggin as his reward for trying to intervene in the fight
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
as in to smack
to deliver a blow to (someone or something) usually in a strong vigorous manner the elderly woman swung her purse and biffed the mugger upside the head
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of biff
Mike Meehall Wood, Forbes, 25 May 2021 Here are the best biffs: Between now and Saturday night, each of the 25 finalist robots will get one chance to run through the gauntlet. —Eric Limer, Popular Mechanics, 5 June 2015
Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 9 Oct. 2025
Noun
Nobody loves the old school biff more than me. —Mike Meehall Wood, Forbes, 25 May 2021 Here are the best biffs: Between now and Saturday night, each of the 25 finalist robots will get one chance to run through the gauntlet. —Eric Limer, Popular Mechanics, 5 June 2015
Verb
The Dodgers have by no means biffed this series. —Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 9 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for biff
Noun
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The Yankees need Wells to provide at least some thump in a bottom third of the order that hasn’t been very good.— Brendan Kuty, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2026
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Moments later, a bass thump sounded in the distance.— Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 27 Mar. 2026
Verb
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Varma smacked Ashok Sharma for 26 runs from three sixes and two fours in the 18th, and reached his hundred with a six and a four off Prasidh Krishna’s last two balls in the final over that went for 22.— ABC News, ABC News, 20 Apr. 2026
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Near mile marker 161, about six miles from the summit, the 2020 Freightliner smacked the barrier wall on the right side of the road.— Logan Smith, CBS News, 17 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Another day, as Mom loads the children into the car, Jeremy tosses a basketball against the house, again and again, his passive aggression registering through the ball’s unyielding thuds and his own frozen gaze.— Richard Brody, New Yorker, 12 Apr. 2026
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The call, which the filing says was made within two minutes of the thuds, was to an employee of the company that owned the development where Okland was hosting the open house.— Karen Cortes, NBC news, 9 Apr. 2026
Verb
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And Silva hit a home run, her third, after attempting a bunt on the previous pitch.— Dan Albano, Oc Register, 25 Apr. 2026
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The Seattle Seahawks have already hit three of their biggest needs in the 2026 NFL Draft, taking Notre Dame running back Jadarian Price on Thursday night in Round 1 and TCU safety Bud Clark and Arkansas cornerback Julian Neal in the second and third rounds on Friday.— Michael-Shawn Dugar, New York Times, 25 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Sheehan managed to keep the Rockies from landing the big blow.— Bill Plunkett, Oc Register, 19 Apr. 2026
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The Senate’s quick passage of the 10-day patch was starkly different than the House’s rare overnight session, during which House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) was dealt two consecutive blows.— Hailey Bullis, The Washington Examiner, 17 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Vince tried to get Shane to slap her in a scene, but Shane refused.— Zach Helfand, New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2026
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Tyler Mikorski was about to board a flight to go on vacation with his girlfriend and her family on March 1 when police slapped cuffs on him.— Jason Abbruzzese, NBC news, 19 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Our expert take The Chase Sapphire Preferred® Card packs a punch for a $95 annual fee card, offering annual travel credits, comprehensive travel protections and more.— Jason Stauffer, CNBC, 20 Apr. 2026
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Reigns hit Punk with a Superman punch.— Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 20 Apr. 2026
Verb
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With the rebound lying in the goal mouth, Malkin was on the spot to bang it home.— Josh Yohe, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2026
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Oregon State, Washington State, New Mexico State, San Jose State and others have expressed interest for the forward who can bang inside, run the floor and hit the mid-range jumper.— Joe Davidson, Sacbee.com, 9 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Biff.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.grautoblog.com/thesaurus/biff. Accessed 26 Apr. 2026.
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