Ways+of+Striking

Taken from English Spark
http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/1TRQyo/www.englishspark.com/en/blogs/the-news/452-esl-material-worksheet-search

– hit
The verb 'to hit' means 'to strike'. This is the most basic and widely used of the words we are talking about today. This word can talk about a strong hit or a weak hit. For example, The car hit the truck at 40 miles per hour. (The car was traveling very fast and it touched or struck (strike) the truck.) The flight attendant hit my elbow when he walked down the aisle. (The flight attendant touched or struck my elbow when he walked down the aisle. It was not a hard or fast hit.)

– crash
The verb 'to crash' means 'to move violently into something'. This is usually faster and harder than 'to hit'. The subject does not want to do this action. For example, When he ran through the door, he crashed into Jenny who was coming in. (He was in a hurry. He wanted to go fast, but didn't know Jenny was there. He accidentally hit her quickly.) The race car driver crashed into the outside wall. (The race car driver could not control his car. He didn't want to hit the outside wall.)

– slam
The verb 'to slam' means 'to hit with a noisy impact'. This is usually fast and hard. The verb 'to slam' usually means making a sharp loud sound when striking something. The subject usually wants to do this action. For example, George slammed the door after having a big fight. (George wanted to make a loud noise because he was angry so he noisily closed the door.) She slammed the book shut after studying for 3 hours straight. (She was tired of studying and didn't want to study anymore.)

– knock
The verb 'to knock' means 'to strike a sounding blow or collision'. The verb 'to slam' has almost the same meaning, but 'to knock' is usually a duller and deeper sound. For example, He knocked on the door. (He made a dull sound by hitting his fist against the door.) I knocked into the desk. (I hit the desk making a soft dull sound.)

– bang
The verb 'to bang' means 'to strike violently'. This word has the feeling or sense of an explosion, like a gunshot. It is usually used the same way 'to slam' is, but not to close something. For example, Jenny banged the shopping cart into the shopping shelves. She knocked over all the cereal boxes. (She hit the shopping shelves hard and it caused an explosion of cereal boxes.)

– bash
The verb 'to bash' means 'to strike with a crashing or smashing blow'. This is very violent strike. It is not very careful, too. For example, The police bashed the door into the drug dealers house. (The door was hit once or several times and it could not probably be used after the police bashed it. It was destroyed.) George was so frustrated with his cell phone. He bashed it against the ground until it stopped working. (George repeatedly hit his cell phone hard until it could not be used.)

– bump
The verb 'to bump' means 'to come in contact with'. This is a gentle hit or strike. The subject does not want to do this action. It is accidental. For example, Jenny bumped into George in the narrow hallway. (She lightly hit George when she walked down the hallway.) When I parked my car, I bumped into the car in front of me. Then, the car's alarm went off. (I was driving slowly, but I accidentally hit the car in front of me. The hit made the car alarm go off.)