hit Hear it!

hit Definition

hit (hit)

transitive verb hit, hit′·ting

  1. to come against, usually with force; strike the car hit the tree
  2. to give a blow to; strike; knock
  3. to strike so as to deliver (a blow)
  4. to strike by throwing or shooting a missile at to hit the target
  5. to cause to knock, bump, or strike, as in falling, moving, etc.: often with on or against to hit one's head on a door
  6. to affect strongly or adversely so as to distress or harm a town hard hit by floods
  7. to come upon by accident or after search; find; light upon to hit the right answer
  8. ☆ to arrive at (a place or point); reach; attain stocks hit a new high
  9. to go to; visit we hit all the art galleries in town
  10. strike, , , & (variously)
  11. ☆ Slang to apply oneself to steadily or frequently to hit the books
  12. Slang to demand or require of: with for; often with up she hit me up for a loan
  13. ☆ Slang to murder: said as of a hired murderer or an assassin
  14. Slang to supply with a drug, etc.
  15. ☆ Baseball to get (a specified base hit) to hit a double
  16. ☆ Blackjack to deal another card to

Etymology: ME hitten < OE hittan < ON hitta, to hit upon, meet with < IE base *keid-, to fall > Welsh cwydd, a fall

intransitive verb

  1. to give a blow or blows; strike
  2. to attack suddenly
  3. to knock, bump, or strike: usually with against
  4. to come by accident or after search: with on or upon
  5. ☆ to ignite the combustible mixture in its cylinders: said of an internal-combustion engine
  6. ☆ Baseball to get a base hit

noun

  1. a blow that strikes its mark
  2. a collision of one thing with another
  3. an effectively witty or sarcastic remark
  4. a stroke of good fortune
  5. a successful and popular song, singer, book, author, etc.
  6. Informal
    1. an instance of finding or matching particular data in a computer search
    2. an instance of being accessed: said of a website
  7. ☆ Slang a murder, as by a hired murderer or an assassin
  8. Slang a dose of a drug, a drink of alcoholic liquor, etc.
  9. Backgammon a game won by a player after one or more of the opponent's men have been removed from the board
  10. ☆ Baseball base hit

hit Related Forms
hit′·ter noun
hit Idioms

hit it off

to get along well together; be congenial

hit off

to mimic or portray briefly and well, usually in a satirical way

hit on

Slang to make sexual advances to

hit or miss

without regard to success or failure; in a haphazard or aimless way

hit (out) at

  1. to aim a blow at; try to hit
  2. to attack in words; criticize severely

hit over the head

  1. to strike on the head
  2. to emphasize repeatedly or strongly to you don't have to hit me over the head with it—I understand

hit the fan

Slang to become suddenly embarrassing, troublesome, etc.; have a strong negative effect

hit the ground running

Informal to work or function vigorously and effectively from the very beginning

hit the road

☆ Slang

to leave; go away

hit Synonyms

hit

modif.

shot, struck, slugged, cuffed, slapped, smacked, pummeled, clouted, punched, boxed, slammed, knocked, beat, beaten, pounded, thrashed, spanked, banged, smashed, cudgeled, basted, slogged, smitten, tapped, rapped, whacked, thwacked, thumped, kicked, swatted*, mugged*, pasted*, plastered*, biffed*, binged*, poked*, rocked*, knocked out*; see also hurt.

Antonyms unhurt*, unscathed, untouched.

hit Synonyms

hit

n.

  1. A blow

    slap, rap, punch; see blow 1.

  2. A popular success

    favorite, achievement, masterstroke, bestseller, sleeper, platinum record, gold record, succés fou (French), sellout, smash*, knockout*; see also success 2.

  3. In baseball, a batted ball that cannot be fielded

    base hit, single, two-base hit, double, three-base hit, triple, home run, wallop*, bagger*, wham*; see also run 3, score 1.

hit Synonyms

hit

v.

  1. To strike

    knock, beat, sock, slap, punch, punish, smite, thump, bump, hammer, strike down, bang, whack, thwack, jab, clap, tap, pat, dab, smack, kick at, pelt, flail, thrash, cuff, kick, rap, cudgel, clout, club, buffet, bat around, kick around, lay low, lash out at, not hold one's punches, hit at, hit out at, make a dent in, let have it, give a black eye, swing at, take a swing at, crack, squail, mug*, pop*, biff*, hook*, bash*, bob*, slug*, nail*, conk*, paste*, whomp*, nail one on*, let fly at*, box off*, ride roughshod over*, box the ears*, whang*, hang a mouse on*; see also knock out.

  2. To bump against

    jostle, butt, knock against, scrape, bump, run against, thump, collide with, bump into, meet head-on; see also crash 4.

  3. To fire in time; said of an internal combustion motor

    catch, respond, go, run, connect, function, hit on all fours*; see also operate 2.

  4. In baseball, to hit safely

    make a hit, single, double, triple, hit safe*, get on*, rip a single*, rip a double*, rip a triple*, blast one*, make a homer*; see also score 1.

hit Usage Examples

Object

  • headline: Jamie Jones hit the headlines, beating Ronnie O'Sullivan live on tv.
  • ball: He hits the ball with all that he's got.
  • nail: Uncle Bill hit the nail on the head with his Scooby versus Evo musings in the STI end of term report.
  • shelf: One of the best 12's to hit the shelves in 2002.
  • jackpot: I've done internet dating before, but evidently not yet hit the jackpot.
  • target: What is the penalty for failure to hit the target?

Converse of object

  • prove: Book 1, when it was complete, proved a hit with readers.
  • score: The German tank scored a hit on the Sherman leaving a pall of smoke rising from its hatches.

Subject

  • flak: But they had been hit by flak and blown up, right over the dam, only about a hundred and fifty feet up.
  • bullet: In June 1943 Horrocks was badly wounded when he was hit by a bullet from a German aircraft.

Adjective modifier

  • instant: Tim Burton's much loved film became an instant hit in 1990 launching Johnny Depp onto the global scene in the eponymous role.
  • big: Bloc Party put Two more years in at position 7, their biggest hit by quite a margin.
  • massive: Recorded with the London Symphony Orchestra, the album yielded a massive hit in Night in White Satin.
  • huge: Our initial first aid course, focussing on the needs of children, took place in May and was a huge hit.
  • direct: A direct hit on the breast plate will give your opponent a shock through the handle of the gun.

Modifies a noun

  • wonder: Q2: Which one hit wonder had a million selling hit with a ' speeded up jeans song ' in 1996?

Noun used with modifier

  • chart: Specializing in party pop from the 60's to current chart hits - Abba to All Saints, The Monkees to Moloko.
  • crossover: In 1994, Officium was released, " one of the biggest crossover hits of the ' 90s " .

Preposition: by

  • flak: But they had been hit by flak and blown up, right over the dam, only about a hundred and fifty feet up.
  • bullet: In June 1943 Horrocks was badly wounded when he was hit by a bullet from a German aircraft.
hit Quotes

You can't think and hit at the same time.

—Berra,Yogi Lawrence Peter

Find out where the ball is, get there; hit it.

—Ranjitsinhji, Prince

England isnot ruined becausesinewy brownmenfroma distant colony sometimes hit a ball further and oftener than our men do.

—Priestley,J(ohn) B(oynton)

Do not hit at all if it can be avoided, but never hit softly.

—Roosevelt,Theodore

In the spacious highways of books major or minor, each poet is allowed the stride that will get him where he wants to go if,God help him, he can hit that stride and keep it.

—Sandburg, Carl