Hit (Verb)
Meaning 1
Cause to experience suddenly; "Panic struck me"; "An interesting idea hit her"; "A thought came to me"; "The thought struck terror in our minds"; "They were struck with fear".
Classification
Verbs of seeing, hearing, feeling.
Examples
- Anxiety suddenly hit her as she realized she was late for the exam.
- A brilliant solution hit the scientist while he was taking a shower.
- The idea hit him like a bolt of lightning, and he immediately started working on it.
- Grief hit the family hard when they lost their beloved pet.
- Inspiration hit the artist as she was exploring the beautiful countryside.
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Meaning 2
Gain points in a game; "The home team scored many times"; "He hit a home run"; "He hit .300 in the past season".
Classification
Verbs of fighting, athletic activities.
Examples
- The baseball player hit a home run in the top of the ninth inning.
- She hit the target in three out of five rounds and won the competition.
- Tom hit the correct answer and earned 10 points for his team.
- Michael hit a double in the first inning and batted in two runs.
- In his last 20 games, the power hitter hit 12 home runs and 25 RBIs.
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Meaning 3
Make a strategic, offensive, assault against an enemy, opponent, or a target; "The Germans struck Poland on Sept. 1, 1939"; "We must strike the enemy's oil fields"; "in the fifth inning, the Giants struck, sending three runners home to win the game 5 to 2".
Classification
Verbs of fighting, athletic activities.
Examples
- The US launched a surprise attack and hit the enemy's base at dawn.
- The cyber attackers hit several major financial institutions last night.
- The fifth inning saw the home team hit, resulting in three runs scored.
- After months of preparation, our troops planned to hit the enemy's defenses.
- Their special operative team was sent in to hit the high-value target.
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Meaning 4
Kill intentionally and with premeditation; "The mafia boss ordered his enemies murdered".
Classification
Verbs of political and social activities and events.
Examples
- The mafia boss ordered a hit on the rival gang leader to eliminate the competition.
- He hired a professional assassin to hit the witness who had been cooperating with the police.
- The authorities suspected that the politician's murder was a hit organized by his opponents.
- A former convict was arrested for the hit on a local businessman who had testified against him.
- The movie depicted a hit gone wrong and the subsequent investigation that exposed a larger conspiracy.
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Meaning 5
Produce by manipulating keys or strings of musical instruments; "The pianist strikes a middle C"; "strike `z' on the keyboard".
Classification
Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging.
Examples
- The guitarist hit a perfect chord during the solo.
- She hit the right notes on her flute, creating a beautiful melody.
- The keys on the piano hit a resonating frequency, filling the room with sound.
- As she hit the strings on her violin, the music filled the concert hall.
- The musician hit a sour note on his trumpet, causing the audience to wince.
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Meaning 6
Drive something violently into a location; "he hit his fist on the table"; "she struck her head on the low ceiling".
Classification
Verbs of walking, flying, swimming.
Examples
- The driver lost control and hit the tree head-on in the middle of the night.
- The meteorite hit the earth's surface with incredible force causing massive destruction.
- Her hand hit the sharp edge of the table as she lost her balance.
- The soccer ball hit the crossbar and bounced back into play.
- The speeding car hit the parked motorcycle and sent it crashing to the ground.
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Meaning 7
Reach a point in time, or a certain state or level; "The thermometer hit 100 degrees"; "This car can reach a speed of 140 miles per hour".
Classification
Verbs of walking, flying, swimming.
Examples
- The share price hit a record high after the company announced its quarterly profits.
- The water level hit a historic low during the long drought season.
- The new policy will hit the highest-income earners the hardest with increased taxes.
- The country's inflation rate hit a two-decade high last quarter, according to government data.
- The highest score in the game requires players to hit level 10 on the most difficult setting.
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Meaning 8
Reach a destination, either real or abstract; "We hit Detroit by noon"; "The water reached the doorstep"; "We barely made it to the finish line"; "I have to hit the MAC machine before the weekend starts".
Classification
Verbs of walking, flying, swimming.
Examples
- We hit the city limits just as the sun was setting.
- By the end of the month, we expect to hit our target profit for the year.
- She has to hit the office before the meeting at 9 am.
- I had to hit the library to finish my research.
- They hit the beach just as the party was getting started.
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Meaning 9
Hit with a missile from a weapon.
Classification
Verbs of fighting, athletic activities.
Examples
- The enemy tank was hit with a precision-guided missile from the aircraft's guns.
- The city was hit with a barrage of rockets and missiles during the early hours of the morning.
- The target was hit with a Tomahawk missile launched from the warship in the distance.
- The defense systems failed to intercept the incoming missile that hit the key military installation.
- The fighter jet was hit with a surface-to-air missile while flying over hostile territory.
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Meaning 10
Pay unsolicited and usually unwanted sexual attention to; "He tries to hit on women in bars".
Classification
Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing.
Examples
- He tries to hit on women in bars but never succeeds due to his lack of charm.
- Mark's attempt to hit on his coworker was rejected, leaving him embarrassed in front of the whole team.
- When he goes to parties, he always tries to hit on the most attractive person in the room.
- Unfortunately, he still has not learned that constantly trying to hit on multiple women at the same time does not work.
- Men who hit on every woman they see often come across as unsincere and shallow.
Meaning 11
Hit against; come into sudden contact with; "The car hit a tree"; "He struck the table with his elbow".
Classification
Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging.
Examples
- The little boy fell and hit his head on the floor.
- The ball hit the ground with a loud thud after being dropped from a great height.
- The ship hit the rocky coastline and started to take on water during the storm.
- The student's elbow hit the desk when he lost his balance in class.
- A speeding car hit a pedestrian crossing the road late at night.
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Meaning 12
Cause to move by striking; "hit a ball".
Classification
Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging.
Examples
- The batter hit the ball over the fence for a home run.
- She hit the nail on the head, securing the board in place.
- The tennis pro hit a strong forehand that her opponent couldn't return.
- The golfer hit his drive down the fairway, setting up an easy approach shot.
- He hit the shuttlecock with great force, but it sailed out of bounds.
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Meaning 13
Encounter by chance; "I stumbled across a long-lost cousin last night in a restaurant".
Classification
Verbs of buying, selling, owning.
Examples
- I was traveling through Europe when I hit up with some old college friends in Barcelona.
- We were strolling through the city when we hit upon a quaint little antique shop tucked away on a side street.
- During my summer vacation, I hit on an interesting activity – a week-long hiking trip in the mountains.
- As I wandered through the crowded festival, I hit upon my favorite childhood band, which nobody seems to know about anymore.
- While exploring the area, I hit on an old bookstore I had been meaning to check out for a while.
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Meaning 14
Hit the intended target or goal.
Classification
Verbs of fighting, athletic activities.
Examples
- The new advertising campaign hit its target audience with great success.
- The pharmaceutical company finally hit the right formula for their new medicine.
- The baseball player hit the ball out of the park to score a home run.
- The team hit their quarterly sales goal and were rewarded with bonuses.
- The chef's new recipe hit the mark with critics, who praised its flavor and presentation.
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Meaning 15
Deal a blow to, either with the hand or with an instrument; "He hit her hard in the face".
Classification
Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging.
Examples
- He hit her hard in the face with his fist.
- The carpenter hit the nail with one precise swing of the hammer.
- The boxer hit his opponent with a strong hook to the jaw.
- She hit the piñata with a stick until it broke open.
- The golfer hit the ball with a force that sent it flying into the woods.
Hyponyms
- Bludgeon
- Pommel
- Plug
- Biff
- Catch
- Tear Into
- Lace Into
- Bash
- Slog
- Swig
- Nail
- Pound
- Bop
- Buff
- Whop
- Lay Into
- Whap
- Stun
- Poke
- Blast
- Fustigate
- Pitch Into
- Thwack
- Wham
- Wallop
- Boom
- Bonk
- Bang
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Meaning 16
Affect or afflict suddenly, usually adversely; "We were hit by really bad weather"; "He was stricken with cancer when he was still a teenager"; "The earthquake struck at midnight".
Classification
Verbs of touching, hitting, tying, digging.
Examples
- The city was hit by a severe economic downturn, causing many businesses to close.
- The sudden news of her illness hit her family unexpectedly.
- The area was hit by a harsh winter storm that left hundreds without power.
- She was hit by a wave of sadness when she saw her ex with someone else.
- The community was hit hard by the devastating flood that destroyed many homes.