Meaning & use
smashing something
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Meanings
noununcountable
The act of hitting or breaking an object hard and violently, often so that it falls apart.
Grammar: Used as a gerund phrase naming an action; it can be the subject or object of a sentence.
Patterns
- smashing something with something
- the smashing of something
- start smashing something
Smashing something when you are angry usually makes the mess worse.
The smashing of the old piano took the workers a whole afternoon.
He kept smashing something in the yard until a neighbor called the police.
noununcountablesport
The act of hitting a ball very hard and fast in a game such as tennis or badminton.
Grammar: A gerund phrase used in sports talk; the object is usually 'the ball' or 'the shuttlecock'.
Patterns
- smashing something over the net
- smashing something past someone
- keep smashing something
Smashing something past your opponent is a quick way to win the point.
She won the game by smashing the ball down the line.
His style of smashing everything at the net surprised the crowd.
noununcountablefigurative
The act of destroying or badly damaging something such as a record, a system, or a barrier.
Grammar: A figurative gerund phrase; the object is usually an abstract thing, not a physical object.
Patterns
- smashing something apart
- smashing something down
- smashing through something
Smashing something as solid as that record takes years of training.
The new law was aimed at smashing the barriers that kept women out of the sport.
They talked about smashing the old system and starting again.
Common combinations
- smashing something to pieces
- The children were smashing the old plates to pieces in the yard.
- smashing something against the wall
- He was so frustrated that he started smashing the box against the wall.
- smashing something open
- The thieves got in by smashing a window open.
- smashing a record
- The runner ended the season by smashing the world record.
- smashing the ball
- She spent the morning smashing the ball over the net.
- the smashing of glass
- We heard the smashing of glass from the street below.
Synonyms and how they differ
- breaking
- More general and often gentler; 'breaking' can describe something cracking on its own, while 'smashing something' stresses a hard, deliberate hit.
- destroying
- Stronger and wider; it can mean ruining something completely over time, not just hitting it once.
- shattering
- Often used for glass or dreams and suggests many small pieces; 'smashing something' simply says it was hit hard.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: smashing something or smashing? smashing something or crashing?
smashing something vs smashing
As an adjective, 'smashing' is old-fashioned British informal for 'excellent': 'a smashing party.' Do not confuse it with the action phrase 'smashing something.'
smashing something vs crashing
'Crashing' means hitting something noisily or failing suddenly, as in 'the car crashed'; it does not mean breaking an object by hitting it.
Practice
Which sentence uses 'smashing something' correctly to describe a repeated action in the past?
Choose one answer.
The past continuous 'was smashing something' shows an action in progress in the past, which fits the question. Option B is correct grammar but describes one finished action, not an action in progress; option C is ungrammatical after 'has'; option D uses the present with a future time, which does not fit.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “smashing something”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.