Violence: English Vocabulary List

to hit a person in the head so much that they die or get seriously injured

"He threatened to beat my brains out."

"The criminal threatened to beat the witness's brains out if he dared to testify in court against him."

to deliberately kill a person

"He took him for ride."

"The dishonest mechanic took the elderly couple for a ride by charging them for repairs that their car did not need."

to try to hurt a person physically or damage something in any slight way

"Do not lay a hand on her."

"If you lay a finger on my little brother, I will make sure you regret it forever."

used to refer to a punch that is hit in a person's mouth

"He got a sandwich."

"The aggressive man threatened to give his opponent a knuckle sandwich if he didn't back down immediately."

to severely beat someone, often said as a threat

"I will knock his block off."

"The angry father threatened to knock the bully block off if he ever touched his son again."

to make an attempt to achieve or do something

"I want to have a go at painting."

"I have never tried snowboarding before but I would like to have a go this winter."

to defeat someone soundly or thoroughly in a competition or argument, often with the implication that the opponent had no chance of winning

"The older boy threatened to clean my clock."

"The experienced boxer cleaned the young challenger's clock by knocking him out in the very first round."

to keep hitting a person to the point of severe injury

"He beat the thief to a pulp."

"The angry crowd threatened to beat the thief to a pulp before the police arrived and arrested him."

to easily win over an opponent or badly defeat them in a competition or contest

"Our team beat the pants off the visitors."

"Our basketball team beat the socks off the visiting team by winning the match with a huge score difference."

to violently or forcefully hit a person or thing many times

"He will whale on him."

"The angry boxer began to whale on his opponent with a series of powerful punches to the head."

(of people) to use their fists in order to hit each other during a fight or competition

"The two men traded punches hard."

"The two boxers traded punches for twelve rounds, but neither of them was willing to give up."

(of two or more people) to get into a serious verbal argument or begin attacking each other physically because of a prior disagreement

"They almost came to blows."

"The two angry drivers almost came to blows after the minor car accident in the parking lot."

to completely defeat or win against someone or something in a convincing and overwhelming manner, whether it be in a competition, argument, game, or other activity

"He made mincemeat of them."

"The experienced debater was expected to make mincemeat of his less prepared opponent."

to thoroughly beat someone, particularly in a contest

"He beat the daylights."

"The angry father threatened to beat the living daylights out of anyone who hurt his daughter."

to physically hit someone, particularly while wearing boxing gloves

"He laid glove on him."

"The boxer was so defensive that his opponent couldn't lay a glove on him throughout the entire match."

to sustain injuries as the result of an accident or fight

"Tom is in the wars today."

"My little brother is always in the wars because he plays football every single day after school."

to deliberately kill a person

"He took her for a ride."

"The con artist promised a lucrative investment but instead planned to take his elderly victim for a ride."

to attack a person or place in order to kill or destroy them

"They will have a go."

"The desperate rebels decided to have a go at the heavily fortified enemy installation."

to hit a person harshly during a fight or conflict

"He cleaned my clock."

"After a heated argument, the frustrated boxer threatened to clean his opponent's clock."

to violently or forcefully hit a person or thing many times

"They will whale on it."

"The frustrated mechanic began to whale on the stubborn engine, hoping to fix it."

(of people) to use their fists in order to hit each other during a fight or competition

"They traded punches."

"The two boxers began to trade punches in the final, intense round of the championship match."

to strongly beat and overcome someone or something through physical force

"He made mincemeat of them."

"The experienced martial artist easily made mincemeat out of his less skilled opponents in the tournament."

to physically attack someone with a great deal of force, causing them harm or injury

"They beat the daylights out of him."

"The angry mob threatened to beat the living daylights out of the man they believed was a thief."

to physically hit someone, particularly while wearing boxing gloves

"He can't lay a glove."

"Despite his opponent's taunts, the boxer couldn't lay a glove on him during the entire match."