spank
/spæŋk/ (bre, ipa) · /spæŋk/ (ame, ipa) · /ˈspaŋk/ (ame, mw)
spank — verb
1. to discipline a child by slapping their bottom with your open hand, usually more
to discipline a child by slapping their bottom with your open hand, usually more than once at a time, as a consequence of bad behaviour.
Adaeze told her son she would spank him if he threw a tantrum at the store.
conditional: would spank...if
Many parents today choose not to spank their children, saying that open communication works better.
negative structure: choose not to spank
The school rules clearly state that no teacher may spank a student for any reason.
Nikos's grandmother used to spank him when he talked back, but she regrets it now.
Shirin took a deep breath and explained the rule to her son instead of spanking him in anger.
文法句型
spank + object
用法筆記
Frequency passive ('was spanked') is common when describing a child's experience. The intensity implied by spank is milder than beat or whip; it specifically refers to an open-handed slap on the bottom, not a blow with an object.
常見錯誤
2. to strike a consenting adult partner on the buttocks with the hand during sexual
to strike a consenting adult partner on the buttocks with the hand during sexual activity, as a way of giving or receiving heightened arousal.
In the novel, the lovers agree to spank each other as part of their private games.
reciprocal: spank each other
Joon and his girlfriend discussed their limits in bed before trying spanking for the first time.
discuss limits before trying [activity]
Élise told her partner that she did not want to be spanked during sex.
Nikhil asked his partner if she wanted to be spanked, and she gently said no.
文法句型
spank + object
用法筆記
This sense refers to consensual adult sexual behaviour and should not be confused with sense 1 (child discipline). In conversation, the meaning is usually clear from context — the subject and object are consenting adults, and the setting is explicitly romantic or sexual. Use with caution when talking to parents or in formal settings, as the child-discipline sense is far more common in everyday English.
常見錯誤
spank — noun
1. a punishment in which an adult uses an open hand to slap a child on the bottom,
a punishment in which an adult uses an open hand to slap a child on the bottom, or a single such slap delivered as part of a punishment.
The little girl knew she deserved a spank for drawing on the wall with markers.
Abigail's father gave her a quick spank when she ran into the street.
give + object + a spank on + body part
At the parenting workshop, the instructor advised Folake against giving her toddler any kind of spank.
After Rafael gave his nephew a firm spank for pushing, the boy cried but kept hitting his cousin.
The babysitter was forbidden from giving the children so much as a single spank.
文法句型
a/one spank
give + object + a spank
用法筆記
As a noun, spank is less common than spanking. Spanking is the more natural choice when referring to the whole event ('He got a spanking'), while a spank usually refers to a single hit. The noun is almost always used in the context of child discipline; the sexual sense is almost never used as a noun.