thrash
thrash Lexical Profile
thrash Game Scores & Validity
• verb
To move or flail wildly, convulsively, or violently.
"The swimmer began to thrash in the water after getting a sudden cramp in his leg."
To defeat an opponent or rival team decisively in a game or competition.
"The home team managed to thrash the defending champions by four goals."
To beat or strike someone or something repeatedly, especially with a stick or whip.
"The storm continued to thrash the coastal trees throughout the night."
To separate grain from stalks and husks by beating (variant of thresh).
"In earlier centuries, farmworkers would thrash the harvested wheat by hand using wooden flails."
• noun
A violent, uncontrolled, or flailing movement.
"With one sudden thrash of its tail, the large fish broke free from the line."
A fast, aggressive subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by rapid percussive beats and low-register guitar riffs (short for thrash metal).
"The band's early albums helped define the sound of 1980s thrash."
British A loud, lively party or social gathering.
"They hosted a memorable farewell thrash at the pub before moving abroad."
Word Nuance & Usage
"Thrash" and "thresh" share the same historical root; in modern English, "thresh" is primarily reserved for the agricultural process of separating grain from stalks, while "thrash" is used for flailing movements, severe beatings, or decisive defeats.
• Rhymes for thrash
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
A dialectal variant of "thresh," derived from Old English "þerscan," meaning to beat, trample, or separate grain from straw.
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.