zing

1 of 2

noun

1
: a shrill humming noise
2
a
: an enjoyably exciting or stimulating quality : zest
really put some zing into this industryErwin Fine
b
: a sharply piquant flavor
barbecue sauce with zing

zing

2 of 2

verb

zinged; zinging; zings

intransitive verb

1
: to make or move with a humming sound
2
: zip, speed

transitive verb

1
: to hit suddenly : zap
2
: to criticize in a pointed or witty manner

Examples of zing in a Sentence

Noun They needed to put some zing back into their relationship. The chili peppers give the sauce a little extra zing. Verb The comics spent the evening cracking jokes and zinging each other. His opponent has run television ads zinging him.
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The crunch of nuts, the melt-in-the-mouth banana and chocolate cream mix perfectly with sweet berries and a zing of chocolate sprinkles. Roger Naylor, The Arizona Republic, 18 Feb. 2024 But one film shot through Melton with a zing of identification: 2022’s Eo. Bethy Squires, Vulture, 15 Jan. 2024 Get The Recipe 26 of 40 Sautéed Snap Peas And Mint This vegetable side gets its zing from lemon zest and fresh mint. Jorie Nicole McDonald, Southern Living, 11 Feb. 2024 Especially when the movie is basically a high-concept rehash of 2022’s Bodies Bodies Bodies, with less of the wicked satirical zing. David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 25 Jan. 2024 His variation — butter lettuce rather than the usual romaine, actually ripe tomato, a judicious amount of crisped bread, the right zing of pomegranate molasses in the dressing — shows thoughtful restraint. Bill Addison, Los Angeles Times, 25 Jan. 2024 The initial sip delivers flavors that are earthy, tart, sweet and tropical with a bracing zing, thanks to the strong ginger beer. Jim Harrington, The Mercury News, 9 Jan. 2024 Levy has crafted an emotional story strong enough to withstand the zings of an ironic generation, who’ve been conditioned to snipe at sincerity. Peter Debruge, Variety, 28 Dec. 2023 Christmas Eve brings a certain zing to the usual Schutte home commotion. Sarah Schutte, National Review, 24 Dec. 2023
Verb
Watch the video to find out, and as a bonus, see who zings Danny Bronx and why. Dalton Ross, EW.com, 4 May 2023 The report also warns if your master password is weak and zings you for not using two-factor authentication. PCMAG, 22 Jan. 2024 Nabulsi’s dialogue often zings with the way people, as opposed to dramatic constructs, actually talk. Sheri Linden, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019 These dishes are rich, comfort foods that require a crisp wine to cut through the fat and zing your palate. Liza B. Zimmerman, Forbes, 28 Dec. 2022 The next step: Leck would like to enable the bot to learn new arguments from other climate debates that constantly zing around on Twitter. Jennifer Welsh, Discover Magazine, 3 Nov. 2010 The author will zing them up to boost your culinary entertaining quotient. Marc Bona, cleveland, 6 Dec. 2022 After all, more than 200 moons zing around the measly eight planets in our own Solar System. Daniel Clery, Science | AAAS, 22 July 2021 Standing still out of fear while others zing past on the highway is like asking your GPS navigation system to route you directly to Regretville. Josh Linkner, Detroit Free Press, 1 Aug. 2020

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'zing.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

imitative

First Known Use

Noun

1902, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1911, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of zing was in 1902

Dictionary Entries Near zing

Cite this Entry

“Zing.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/zing. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

zing

noun
ˈziŋ
1
: a shrill humming sound
2
: a lively or energetic quality
a musical show with lots of zing

More from Merriam-Webster on zing

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