Thwacking

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Delivering a hard and loud blow to something or someone
2. Hitting something with strong, noisy impact
3. Giving a powerful and resounding strike to an object or person

Etymology: The sound of "thwack" is partly a sound in itself: it imitates the crack of something being beaten, much as "whack" does. But the verb also has an older, quieter ancestor. Old English "þaccian" meant to pat, tap or stroke gently, and a Middle English relative, "thakken," kept that softer sense of dabbing or patting. Over time, the gentle touch of a pat was replaced by the hard blow of a strike, and the two strands merged in "twakken," which by the late Middle Ages meant hitting someone with something. The same root reaches back much further. Its ancestor is a Proto-Indo-European root meaning to grasp with the hand or touch, which also gave Latin "tangere," meaning to touch. "Thwack" and "tangent" are therefore doublets, two English words descended from one ancient root by different routes. "Thwacking" is the present participle and gerund of "thwack," so it describes the action of striking with force, in progress.

Synonyms: slapping, hitting, striking