pounced; pouncing
1
a
: to swoop upon and seize something with or as if with talons
b
: to seize upon and make capital of something (such as another's blunder or an opportunity)
2
: to make a sudden assault or approach
pounced; pouncing
: to dust, rub, finish, or stencil with pounce
1
: a fine powder formerly used to prevent ink from spreading
2
: a fine powder for making stenciled patterns
Synonyms
Examples of pounce in a Sentence
Verb (1)
the muggers pounced on the unsuspecting tourists as soon as they rounded the corner
Recent Examples on the Web
Chicago Tribune, 4 Nov. 2024
Almost immediately, Trump pounced on the downbeat report to help boost his economic pitch to voters.
—Dan Mangan,kevin Breuninger,jake Piazza,annie Nova,rebecca Picciotto,ece Yildirim, CNBC, 4 Nov. 2024
Sofia Quaglia, Discover Magazine, 29 Oct. 2024
The dog pounces, but Donald is able to fling it off him.
—James Grebey, Vulture, 10 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for pounce 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Verb
Colts nose tackle Grover Stewart pounced on the ball at the Bears 16-yard line.
—Chicago Tribune, 4 Nov. 2024
Almost immediately, Trump pounced on the downbeat report to help boost his economic pitch to voters.
—Dan Mangan,kevin Breuninger,jake Piazza,annie Nova,rebecca Picciotto,ece Yildirim, CNBC, 4 Nov. 2024
Noun
The embryos sense the vibrations of the snake slithering around them and can plop out of their eggs early to escape a possible pounce.
—Sofia Quaglia, Discover Magazine, 29 Oct. 2024
The dog pounces, but Donald is able to fling it off him.
—James Grebey, Vulture, 10 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for pounce
Dictionary Entries Near pounce
Cite this Entry
“Pounce.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pounce. Accessed 25 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share