thrash

Everyday

1. To thrash is to move arms, legs or body around wildly and violently, like a fish thrashing on a hook. tree →
2. To thrash a team is to beat them easily by a lot (informal). tree →
3. To thrash someone is to beat or hit them very hard many times, which is cruel and wrong. tree →
4. «Thrash out» means to talk about a problem until you solve it. tree →

In the lessons

In sports talk, «We thrashed them 6-0» means we won by a lot. In swimming and water safety, a person thrashing in water may be drowning: shout for a lifeguard and throw something that floats rather than jumping in. In stories, a trapped animal or a monster thrashes about. In history, children were once thrashed at school; today hitting children is wrong.

Examples

• The fish thrashed about on the riverbank. tree →
• Our team thrashed theirs 7 to 1. tree →
• The baby thrashed her arms and legs in the bath. tree →
• Someone thrashing in deep water may need help — call a lifeguard. tree →
• The crocodile thrashed its tail. tree →
• The class thrashed out the rules for the game. tree →
• The wind made the branches thrash against the window. tree →

Note

Regular verb: «thrashed»; third person «thrashes». «Thrash» (move wildly, beat) is different from «thresh» (separate grain from wheat) and «trash» (rubbish). In sports scores, «thrashed» means a big difference between the scores.