the.com/pummel
To hit something so many times you forget why you started.
means To strike someone or something repeatedly with the fists in a hard, raining-blow beating.
from From Middle English 'pomel,' the knob or rounded top of a sword hilt — the same root that gives us 'pommel.' To pummel someone originally meant to beat them with the pommel of your weapon, or just with your fists used like one, knuckles first. The word kept the blunt, knobby violence of its hilt long after swords left the picture.
- origin
- from pommel, the fist-shaped sword hilt
- original meaning
- once meant to beat with fists specifically
- usage shift
- now covers fists, waves, insults, bad news
- synonym energy
- stronger than hit, weaker than annihilate