hit

(hĭt)

1. a. To come into contact with forcefully; strike: The car hit the guardrail.
   b. To reach with or as if with a blow: The bullet hit the police officer in the shoulder.
2. a. To cause to come into contact: She hit her hand against the wall.
   b. To deal a blow to.
   c. To strike with a missile: fired and hit the target.
3. To press or push (a key or button, for example): hit the return key by mistake.
4. Sports
   a. To reach with a propelled ball or puck: hit the running back with a pass.
   b. To score in this way: She hit the winning basket.
   c. To perform (a shot or maneuver) successfully: couldn't hit the jump shot.
   d. To propel with a stroke or blow: hit the ball onto the green.
5. Baseball
   a. To execute (a base hit) successfully: hit a single.
   b. To bat against (a pitcher or kind of pitch) successfully: can't hit a slider.
6. a. To affect, especially adversely: The company was hit hard by the recession. Influenza hit the elderly the hardest.
   b. To be affected by (a negative development): Their marriage hit a bad patch.
7. Informal
   a. To win (a prize, for example), especially in a lottery.
   b. To arise suddenly in the mind of; occur to: It finally hit him that she might be his long-lost sister.
8. a. Informal To go to or arrive at: We hit the beach early.
   b. Informal To attain or reach: Monthly sales hit a new high. She hit 40 on her last birthday.
   c. To produce or represent accurately: trying to hit the right note.
9. Games To deal cards to.
10. Sports To bite on or take (bait or a lure). Used of a fish.

1. To strike or deal a blow.
2. a. To come into contact with something; collide.
   b. To attack: The raiders hit at dawn.
   c. To happen or occur: The storm hit without warning.
3. To achieve or find something desired or sought: finally hit on the answer; hit upon a solution to the problem.
4. Baseball To bat or bat well: Their slugger hasn't been hitting lately.
5. Sports To score by shooting, especially in basketball: hit on 7 of 8 shots.
6. To ignite a mixture of air and fuel in the cylinders. Used of an internal-combustion engine.

1. a. A collision or impact.
   b. A successfully executed shot, blow, thrust, or throw.
   c. Sports A deliberate collision with an opponent, such as a body check in ice hockey.
2. A successful or popular venture: a Broadway hit.
3. Computer Science
   a. A match of data in a search string against data that one is searching.
   b. A connection made to a website over the Internet or another network: Our company's website gets about 2,000 hits daily.
4. An apt or effective remark.
5. Abbr. H Baseball A base hit.
6. Slang
   a. A dose of a narcotic drug.
   b. A puff of a cigarette or a pipe.
7. Slang A murder planned and carried out usually by a member of an underworld syndicate.

Related Forms:

• hitˈless adjective

• hitˈta·ble adjective