hit
[verb]
Synonyms:
- strike, bang, beat, clout (informal), knock, slap, smack, thump, wallop (informal), whack
- collide with, bang into, bump, clash with, crash against, run into, smash into
- reach, accomplish, achieve, arrive at, attain, gain
- affect, damage, devastate, impact on, influence, leave a mark on, overwhelm, touch
- hit it off: get on (well) with, be on good terms, click (slang), get on like a house on fire (informal)
[noun]
Synonyms:
- stroke, belt (informal), blow, clout (informal), knock, rap, slap, smack, wallop (informal)
- success, sensation, smash (informal), triumph, winner

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Related Idioms: give one a clip
Related Words: buffet, pound, stroke

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English Thesaurus: crash, hit, collide, run into something, smash into something, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. hit¹ S1 W2 /hɪt/ verb (past tense and past participle hit, present participle hitting)
[Date: 1000-1100; Language: Old Norse; Origin: hitta 'to find, hit']

1. TOUCH SOMEBODY/SOMETHING HARD [transitive] to touch someone or something quickly and hard with your hand, a stick etc:
He raised the hammer and hit the bell.
hit somebody/something with something
The robbers hit him over the head with a baseball bat.

2. CRASH INTO SOMETHING [transitive] to move into something or someone quickly and with force:
The tanks exploded as the plane hit the ground.
He was hit by a car.

3. HURT YOURSELF [transitive] to move a part of your body quickly against something accidentally, causing pain Synonym : bang:
The ceiling’s low, so be careful you don’t hit your head.
hit something on/against something
She slipped and hit her head on the sidewalk.

4. SPORT [transitive]
a) if you hit a ball or other object, you make it move forward quickly by hitting it with a bat, stick etc Synonym : strike:
Hit the ball as hard as you can.
b) to get points by hitting a ball in a game such as baseball or cricket:
Last year, Griffey hit 49 home runs.

5. PRESS [transitive] informal to press a part in a machine, car, etc to make it work:
Maria hit the brakes just in time.

6. ATTACK [transitive] to attack something or wound someone with a bomb, bullet etc:
Our ship was badly hit and sank within minutes.
A second shot hit her in the back.
The bomb failed to hit its target.

7. AFFECT BADLY [intransitive and transitive] if something bad hits a place or a person, it suddenly happens and affects people badly:
The village has been hit by a devastating drought.
Hurricane Louis is expected to hit at the weekend.
be badly/severely/hard hit
The company has been hard hit by the drop in consumer confidence.
The south of the country is the worst hit by the recession.

8. HAVE PROBLEMS [transitive] to experience trouble, problems etc
hit a snag/problems/a bad patch etc
My father hit a bad patch, he had to sell the house.

9. REACH A LEVEL/NUMBER [transitive] to reach a particular level or number:
Sales have hit the 1 million mark.
hit a peak/an all-time high etc
Earnings hit a peak in the early 1980s.
hit rock-bottom/an all-time low etc
Oil prices have hit rock-bottom.

10. REALIZE [transitive] if a fact hits you, you suddenly realize its importance and feel surprised or shocked:
It’s impossible to pinpoint a moment when it hit me that I was ‘a success’.
He was gone before they knew what had hit them (=realized what had happened).

11. SMELL/SIGHT ETC [transitive] if a smell or sight hits you, you suddenly smell or see it:
The smell of stale smoke hit him as he entered.

12. ARRIVE [transitive] informal to arrive at a place:
They hit the main road two kilometres further on.
hit town American English:
I’ll look for work as soon as I hit town.

13. hit the road/trail informal to begin a journey

14. hit the shops/streets if a product hits the shops, it becomes available to buy:
I managed to get a copy of the book before it hit the shops.

15. hit the headlines to be reported widely on television, in newspapers etc:
The couple hit the headlines last year when their relationship broke down.

16. hit the bottle informal to start drinking too much alcohol regularly:
After his marriage failed, he hit the bottle big time.

17. hit the dirt/the deck informal to fall to the ground in order to avoid something dangerous:
My first instinct was to hit the dirt.

18. hit a (brick) wall informal to suddenly not be able to make any progress:
I felt I’d hit a wall with my playing.

19. hit the buffers/skids informal if a plan, project etc hits the buffers, it fails:
Croft’s comeback hit the skids yesterday when she lost in the quarter-finals.

20. hit somebody when they are down informal to upset or harm someone when they are already defeated

21. hit somebody where it hurts informal to do something that you know will upset someone in the most damaging way:
Hit your husband where it hurts – in his wallet!

22. hit it off (with somebody) informal if two people hit it off, they like each other as soon as they meet:
I knew you’d hit it off with Mike.

23. hit the big time (also hit it big American English) informal to suddenly become very famous, successful, and rich:
The 25-year-old painter hopes to hit it big in New York.

24. hit the ground running to start doing something successfully without any delay:
Law graduates are expected to hit the ground running.

25. hit the jackpot
a) to win a lot of money
b) to have a big success:
Owens hit the jackpot in his first professional game with the Cowboys.

26. hit the nail on the head informal used to say that what someone has said is exactly right:
You’ve hit the nail on the head there, David.

27. hit home
a) if a remark, criticism etc about you hits home, you realize that it is true:
Graham didn’t reply, but she could see her words had hit home.
b) if a blow or kick hits home, it hits the thing it is aimed at

28. hit the spot informal to have exactly the good effect that you wanted, especially when you are hungry or thirsty

29. hit the roof/ceiling informal to be very angry:
Ranieri returned, saw the mess, and hit the roof.

30. hit the sack (also hit the hay American English) informal to go to bed
⇒ the shit hits the fan at shit²(17), ⇒ hit/strike paydirt at paydirt

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. hit² S3 W3 noun [countable]

1. SUCCESSFUL something such as a film, play, song etc that is very popular and successful
a hit single/show/record etc
the hit musical ‘Phantom of the Opera’
a big/smash/number 1 etc hit
the Beatles’ greatest hits
Which band had a hit with ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’?
be a hit with somebody (=be liked by them)
It’s hoped the new museum will be a big hit with families.

2. HIT SOMETHING an occasion when something that is aimed at something else touches it, reaches it, or damages it:
Our ship took a direct hit and sank.

3. COMPUTER
a) an occasion when someone visits a website:
The site had 2,000 hits in the first week.
b) a result of a computer search, especially on the Internet:
thousands of irrelevant hits

4. take a hit to be badly affected in some way:
The region's economy will take a hit if the airbase is closed.

5. informal a feeling of pleasure obtained from taking an illegal drug

6. informal a murder that has been arranged to happen
⇒ hit man

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

hit
noun
I. act of hitting sth/sb
ADJ. direct
VERB + HIT give sth, make, score Give it a good hit At last he managed to score a hit.
receive, suffer, take One of the tanks took a direct hit.
HIT + NOUN list She was at the top of the terrorists' hit list (= the list of people they intended to kill) for over two years. Which services are on the government's hit list?
man, squad He claimed that a hit man had been paid £20,000 to kill him.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

hit
II. sb/sth that is very popular
ADJ. big, greatest, huge, massive, real, smash The show has been a smash hit.
immediate, instant | box-office, chart The band are here to promote their latest chart hit.
HIT + NOUN album, film, movie, record, show, single, song | parade (old-fashioned) The single was number one in the British hit parade
PREP. ~ with The series has been a big hit with children.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

hit
verb
I. touch sb/sth with a lot of force
ADV. hard She didn't hit me very hard.
almost, nearly A taxi almost hit him as he was crossing the street.
accidentally I accidentally hit my knee on the desk.
VERB + HIT want to I was so angry, I wanted to hit him.
be going to I was afraid he was going to hit me.
PREP. in She hit him in the face.
on I hit my head on the low doorway.
with He hit her with a stick.
PHRASES hit sb over the head He was hit over the head with a broken bottle.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

hit
II. have a bad effect on sb/sth
ADV. badly, hard, heavily, severely Our department has been badly hit by the cutbacks. Some businesses have been hit very hard by the rise in interest rates.
PHRASAL VERBS hit out
ADV. hard | wildly I just hit out wildly in all directions.
PREP. at In a rousing speech the minister hit out at racism in the armed forces.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

hit
verb
1.
BAD: Turning round, I hit a vase which broke into several pieces.
GOOD: Turning round, I knocked over a vase which broke into several pieces.

Usage Note:
knock over = hit something by accident so that it falls from a standing position: 'The cat jumped up onto the table and knocked over a full glass of red wine.'

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2.
BAD: I was so terrified that I hit and kicked them with all my might.
GOOD: I was so terrified that I punched and kicked them with all my might.

Usage Note:
punch and kick (NOT hit and kick ): 'The boy on the ground was punching and kicking to defend himself.'

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Common Errors ▲

crash verb [intransitive and transitive] to hit another vehicle, a tree, the ground etc, with a lot of force, causing a lot of damage:
The plane crashed a kilometre from the runway.
He was scared I’d crash his car.
The car crashed into a tree.
hit verb [transitive] to move into something quickly and with force:
He wasn’t paying attention, and almost hit another car.
The car hit a lamppost.
collide verb [intransitive] if two cars, trains, planes etc collide, they hit each other, especially when they are moving in opposite directions:
The two planes collided in mid-air.
An express train collided with a freight train in the morning rush hour.
run into something phrasal verb [transitive] to hit a vehicle or object that is directly in front of you, especially because you are not paying attention:
He ran into the car in front while he was talking on his mobile phone.
smash into something phrasal verb [transitive] to crash into something, causing a great amount of damage:
An army helicopter smashed into the side of the mountain.
plough into British English, plow into American English phrasal verb [transitive] to crash into something with a lot of force, especially when your vehicle continues moving afterwards:
The bus went out of control and ploughed into a line of traffic.
ram verb [transitive] to deliberately hit another boat or vehicle very hard, especially when it is not moving:
The ship had been rammed by a submarine.
The gunmen tried to ram the police car.
a car/train/plane etc crash
He was badly hurt in a car crash.
a road/rail/air crash
There will be an investigation into the cause of the air crash.
a head-on crash (=in which the front part of two vehicles hit each other)
He died in a head-on crash with a lorry.
a fatal crash (=in which someone is killed)
There have been several fatal crashes on this road.
a high-speed crash
the risk of injury from a high-speed crash
a horrific/terrible/appalling crash
a horrific crash in which three teenage boys were killed
have a crash (also be involved in a crash) (=in a car)
I’ve been nervous about driving since I had a crash last year.
a crash happens/occurs
The three-vehicle crash happened on the corner of Ongar Road.
a crash involves something
Two women were taken to hospital after a crash involving a bus and a car.
a crash victim (=someone injured or killed in a crash)
Families of the crash victims want to know what happened.
a crash site/scene (=place where a crash happens)
The authorities closed off a five-mile area around the crash site.
a crash investigator (=someone who tries to find the cause of a crash)
Crash investigators spent several days examining the scene.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

hit to hit someone quickly and hard with your hand, a stick etc:
He hit him hard in the stomach.
I don’t like to see people hitting a dog.
beat to hit someone deliberately many times, especially very hard:
The girl had been beaten to death.
He was beating the donkey with a stick.
strike written to hit someone with your hand or a weapon. Strike is more formal than hit and is mainly used in written English:
Her husband struck her twice across the face.
Police say that the man had been struck on the head.
punch to hit someone hard with your closed hand, especially in a fight:
I punched him on the nose.
She was screaming and punching him with her fists.
thump /θʌmp/ informal to punch someone very hard:
Sometimes I just want to thump him.
beat somebody up to hurt someone badly in a violent attack, by hitting them many times:
If I tell the police, they'll beat me up.
He had been beaten up and tortured with lighted cigarettes.
slap to hit someone with your open hand, especially because you are angry with them:
They had a big row and she ended up slapping him.
spank (also smack especially British English) to hit someone, especially a child, with your open hand in order to punish them:
Should a parent ever smack a child?
I don’t agree with smacking.
In those days, children were spanked if they behaved badly.
bang a loud sound caused especially when something hard or heavy hits something else:
I heard a loud bang and rushed out to see what had happened.
He slammed the door shut with a bang.
crash a very loud sound caused when something hits something else, especially when damage is caused:
The tray of dishes fell to the floor with a crash.
I heard an enormous crash outside our house, and I went to see what had happened.
thud a quiet low sound made when a heavy object falls down onto surface:
There was a dull thud as the box hit the floor.
His head hit the ground with a sickening thud.
clink a short ringing sound made when two glass, metal, or china objects hit each other:
the clink of champagne glasses
The clink of cutlery could be heard in the restaurant.
tinkle the pleasant sound that is made by light pieces of glass or metal hitting each other repeatedly:
He listened to the faint tinkle of cow bells in the distance.
jingle the sound of small metal objects being shaken together:
the jingle of her bracelets
the jingle of keys
rattle a short repeated sound made when things hit against each other - used especially when part of something is loose and is hitting against something:
There was a strange rattle coming from the engine.
the rattle of the trolley

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

hit to hit someone quickly and hard with your hand, a stick etc:
He hit him hard in the stomach.
I don’t like to see people hitting a dog.
beat to hit someone deliberately many times, especially very hard:
The girl had been beaten to death.
He was beating the donkey with a stick.
strike written to hit someone with your hand or a weapon. Strike is more formal than hit and is mainly used in written English:
Her husband struck her twice across the face.
Police say that the man had been struck on the head.
punch to hit someone hard with your closed hand, especially in a fight:
I punched him on the nose.
She was screaming and punching him with her fists.
thump /θʌmp/ informal to punch someone very hard:
Sometimes I just want to thump him.
beat somebody up to hurt someone badly in a violent attack, by hitting them many times:
If I tell the police, they'll beat me up.
He had been beaten up and tortured with lighted cigarettes.
slap to hit someone with your open hand, especially because you are angry with them:
They had a big row and she ended up slapping him.
spank (also smack especially British English) to hit someone, especially a child, with your open hand in order to punish them:
Should a parent ever smack a child?
I don’t agree with smacking.
In those days, children were spanked if they behaved badly.
knock to hit a door or window with your closed hand in order to attract the attention of the people inside:
Someone was knocking on the door.
I knocked loudly but no one came.
whack /wæk/ informal to hit something very hard:
Edmonds whacked the ball into the air.
bash to hit something hard, especially in a way that causes damage:
The police had to bash the door down to get in.
tap to gently hit something with your fingers, often in order to attract someone’s attention:
I tapped him on the shoulder.
I heard someone tapping on the window.
rap to knock quickly or hit something several times:
He rapped the table with his pen to bring the meeting to order.
Two police officers rapped on the door at 7 o'clock in the morning.
bang to suddenly hit something hard, in a way that makes a loud noise:
Her father banged his fist down on the table angrily.
The door suddenly banged shut.
pound written to hit something many times with a lot of force:
I could hear the sea pounding on the rocks.
She pounded on the door and shouted wildly.
hammer written to hit something quickly many times making a loud continuous noise:
The rain was hammering on the roof.
A crowd of people were outside hammering on the door angrily.
bump to hit a part of your body against something, especially because you do not see or notice it:
Careful you don’t bump your head – the ceiling’s very low.
bang/bash to hit something hard, so that you hurt yourself or damage something:
He banged into the car in front.
I bashed my knee climbing over a gate.
She fell and bashed her chin on the ground.
stub to hit your toe against something and hurt it:
I stubbed my toe on the piano leg.
bestseller a book that a lot of people buy:
His prize-winning book ‘A Year in Provence’ became an international bestseller.
blockbuster a film that a lot of people watch, especially an exciting film:
a Hollywood blockbuster
a blockbuster movie
sell-out a concert, sports event etc which so many people want to see that all the tickets are sold:
The concert was a sell-out.
the band’s sell-out tour of the US
cult movie/band/figure etc a film, band, person etc that has become very popular and fashionable with a particular group of people:
a cult TV programme
craze something that suddenly becomes popular, so that a lot of people do it, buy it etc:
the latest dance craze that has been sweeping the US
the craze for ultra expensive designer jeans
fad informal something that is very popular for a short time – used about something that you disapprove of, which you do not think will last for very long:
Most diets are just fads.
I think it’s a passing fad.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

hit to hit someone quickly and hard with your hand, a stick etc:
He hit him hard in the stomach.
I don’t like to see people hitting a dog.
beat to hit someone deliberately many times, especially very hard:
The girl had been beaten to death.
He was beating the donkey with a stick.
strike written to hit someone with your hand or a weapon. Strike is more formal than hit and is mainly used in written English:
Her husband struck her twice across the face.
Police say that the man had been struck on the head.
punch to hit someone hard with your closed hand, especially in a fight:
I punched him on the nose.
She was screaming and punching him with her fists.
thump /θʌmp/ informal to punch someone very hard:
Sometimes I just want to thump him.
beat somebody up to hurt someone badly in a violent attack, by hitting them many times:
If I tell the police, they'll beat me up.
He had been beaten up and tortured with lighted cigarettes.
slap to hit someone with your open hand, especially because you are angry with them:
They had a big row and she ended up slapping him.
spank (also smack especially British English) to hit someone, especially a child, with your open hand in order to punish them:
Should a parent ever smack a child?
I don’t agree with smacking.
In those days, children were spanked if they behaved badly.
throw a punch (=try to hit someone)
Rob was so angry that he turned round and threw a punch at the man.
land a punch (=manage to hit someone)
Then I began to land some good punches.
give somebody a punch
He gave me a punch on the nose.
deliver a punch formal (=hit someone)
Who actually delivered the punch that killed the man?
take a punch (=be hit, or deal well with being hit)
I took a lot of punches but I gave a lot too.
a hard/powerful punch
My stomach took a couple of hard punches.
a good punch
Tyson landed one good punch but it wasn’t enough.
a knockout punch (=a blow that knocks someone down so that they cannot get up again)
In the fourth round, Lewis produced a knockout punch that ended the fight.
make a hole in something to cause a hole to appear in something:
Make a hole in the bottom of the can using a hammer and nail.
pierce to make a small hole in or through something, using a pointed object:
The dog's teeth had pierced her skin.
Shelley wanted to have her ears pierced (=for earrings).
prick to make a very small hole in the surface of something, using a pointed object:
Prick the potatoes before baking them.
My finger was bleeding where the needle had pricked it.
puncture to make a small hole in something, especially something where skin or a wall surrounds a softer or hollow inside part:
The bullet had punctured his lung.
perforate formal to make a hole or holes in something:
Fragments of the bullet had perforated his intestines.
drill to make a hole using a special tool, often one which turns round and round very quickly:
The dentist started drilling a hole in my tooth.
They won a contract to drill for oil in the area.
bore to make a deep round hole through a rock, into the ground etc:
They had to bore through solid rock.
The men were boring a hole for the tunnel.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

hit:
I’ve got a bad bruise where I hit my leg against the table.
The car hit a tree.
bump to hit a part of your body against something, especially because you do not see or notice it:
Careful you don’t bump your head – the ceiling’s very low.
bang/bash to hit something hard, so that you hurt yourself or damage something:
He banged into the car in front.
I bashed my knee climbing over a gate.
She fell and bashed her chin on the ground.
stub to hit your toe against something and hurt it:
I stubbed my toe on the piano leg.
injury damage to part of your body caused by an accident or an attack:
The passengers were taken to hospital with minor injuries.
wound an injury, especially a deep cut in your skin made by a knife, bullet, or bomb:
He died of a gunshot wound to the head.
cut a small injury made when a sharp object cuts your skin:
Blood was running from a cut on his chin.
bruise a dark mark on your skin that you get when you fall or get hit:
Jack often comes home from playing rugby covered in bruises.
graze/scrape a small injury that marks your skin or breaks the surface slightly:
She fell off her bike and got a few grazes on her legs and knees.
gash a long deep cut:
He had a deep gash across his forehead.
sprain an injury to your ankle, wrist, knee etc, caused by suddenly twisting it:
It’s a slight sprain – you should rest your ankle for a week.
strain an injury to a muscle caused by stretching it or using it too much:
a muscle strain in his neck
fracture a crack or broken part in a bone:
a hip fracture

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

hit:
Jack hit the ball and it flew over the fence
knock to hit a door or window with your closed hand in order to attract the attention of the people inside:
Someone was knocking on the door.
I knocked loudly but no one came.
strike written to hit a surface. Strike is more formal than hit and is mainly used in written English:
The ball struck the side of the goal.
whack /wæk/ informal to hit something very hard:
Edmonds whacked the ball into the air.
bash to hit something hard, especially in a way that causes damage:
The police had to bash the door down to get in.
tap to gently hit something with your fingers, often in order to attract someone’s attention:
I tapped him on the shoulder.
I heard someone tapping on the window.
rap to knock quickly or hit something several times:
He rapped the table with his pen to bring the meeting to order.
Two police officers rapped on the door at 7 o'clock in the morning.
bang to suddenly hit something hard, in a way that makes a loud noise:
Her father banged his fist down on the table angrily.
The door suddenly banged shut.
pound written to hit something many times with a lot of force:
I could hear the sea pounding on the rocks.
She pounded on the door and shouted wildly.
hammer written to hit something quickly many times making a loud continuous noise:
The rain was hammering on the roof.
A crowd of people were outside hammering on the door angrily.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

popular liked by a lot of people:
a popular restaurant
Marmaris is one of Turkey’s most popular tourist destinations.
His films were hugely popular.
well-liked used about someone who many people like:
He is an experienced and well-liked member of the team.
Stein is well-respected and well-liked by the troops.
big/huge [not before noun] informal very popular, especially in a particular place:
The band are big in Europe.
Apparently this type of game is huge in Japan.
hot informal someone or something that is hot, is very popular or fashionable and everyone wants to use them, see them, buy them etc:
one of this year’s hottest fashion trends
a hot young singer from Nashville
bestseller a book that a lot of people buy:
His prize-winning book ‘A Year in Provence’ became an international bestseller.
blockbuster a film that a lot of people watch, especially an exciting film:
a Hollywood blockbuster
a blockbuster movie
hit something such as a song, show, or film which is very popular and successful:
The band played all their old hits.
The film was a box-office hit (=a lot of people went to see it at the cinema).
She stars in ABC’s hit show ‘Desperate Housewives’.
sell-out a concert, sports event etc which so many people want to see that all the tickets are sold:
The concert was a sell-out.
the band’s sell-out tour of the US
cult movie/band/figure etc a film, band, person etc that has become very popular and fashionable with a particular group of people:
a cult TV programme
craze something that suddenly becomes popular, so that a lot of people do it, buy it etc:
the latest dance craze that has been sweeping the US
the craze for ultra expensive designer jeans
fad informal something that is very popular for a short time – used about something that you disapprove of, which you do not think will last for very long:
Most diets are just fads.
I think it’s a passing fad.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

realize to begin to understand, notice, or know something that you did not understand etc before:
I hadn’t realized that Ben was his brother.
She suddenly realized who the man in the photograph was.
become aware to gradually realize that something is happening or is true, over a period of time:
He slowly became aware that he was not alone
People are becoming more aware of the harmful effects of cars on the environment.
dawn on somebody if something dawns on you, you realize it for the first time – often used in the phrase it dawned on somebody:
It dawned on me that he could be lying.
It only dawned on her that she was in danger when she saw rescue workers running away from the building.
He thought about the dream for a long time before its meaning began to dawn on him.
sink in if something sinks in, you begin to realize its full meaning or importance, especially gradually:
It took a few minutes for the doctor’s words to sink in.
The reality of what I had done slowly began to sink in.
hit if a fact hits you, you suddenly understand it and how important it is:
It hit me one day that he didn’t care. He’d talk when I phoned him, but he’d never call me.
strike if an idea or thought strikes you, you suddenly think of it:
It suddenly struck her what a risk she was taking.
A thought has just struck me - there must be other people with the same problem.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

hit
hɪt
See: hard-hitting , make a hit , smash hit

[TahlilGaran] English Idioms Dictionary ▲