Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular presenttense hits, present participle hittinglanguage note: The form hit is used in the present tense and is the past tense and past participle.
1. verb
If you hit someone or something, you deliberately touch them with a lot of force, with your hand or an object held in your hand.
Find the exact grip that allows you to hit the ball hard. [VERB noun]
She hit him hard across his left arm. [VERB noun]
Police at the scene said the victim had been hit several times in the head. [VERB noun]
Synonyms: strike, beat, knock, punch More Synonyms of hit
2. verb
When one thing hits another, it touches it with a lot of force.
The car had apparently hit a traffic sign before skidding out of control. [VERB noun]
She hit the last barrier and sprawled across the track. [VERB noun]
Synonyms: collide with, run into, bump into, clash with More Synonyms of hit
3. verb
If a bomb or missile hits its target, it reaches it.
...multiple-warhead missiles that could hit many targets at a time. [VERB noun]
The hospital had been hit with heavy artillery fire. [VERB noun]
Hit is also a noun.
First a house took a direct hit and then the rocket exploded.
4. verb
If something hits a person, place, or thing, it affects them very badly.
[journalism]
The plan to charge motorists £75 a year to use the motorway is going to hit me hard. [VERB noun]
Spain has been hit by storms since the beginning of the week. [VERB noun]
Special schools were hardest hit. [VERB noun]
5. verb
When a feeling or an idea hits you, it suddenly affects you or comes into your mind.
It hit me that I had a choice. [VERB noun that]
Then the answer hit me. It had been staring me in the face. [VERB noun]
Synonyms: strike, come to, occur to, dawn on More Synonyms of hit
6. verb
If you hit a particular high or low point on a scale of something such as success or health, you reach it.
[journalism]
He admits to having hit the lowest point in his life. [VERB noun]
Oil prices hit record levels yesterday. [VERB noun]
Synonyms: reach, strike, gain, achieve More Synonyms of hit
7. countable noun [oft NOUN noun]
If a CD, film, or play is a hit, it is very popular and successful.
The song became a massive hit in 1945.
...the surprise hit video of the year.
Synonyms: success, winner, triumph, smash [informal] More Synonyms of hit
8. countable noun
A hit is a single visit to a website.
[computing]
Our small company has had 78,000 hits on its internet pages.
9. countable noun
If someone who is searching for information on the internet gets a hit, they find a website where there is that information.
10.
See hit it off
11.
See make a hit
12. to hit the bottle
13. to hit the headlines
14. to hit home
15. to hit the nail on the head
16. to hit the road
17. to hit the roof
18. to hit someone for six
Phrasal verbs:
See hit back
See hit on
See hit out
See hit upon
More Synonyms of hit
hit in British English
(hɪt)
verbWord forms: hits, hitting or hit(mainly tr)
1. (also intr)
to deal (a blow or stroke) to (a person or thing); strike
he hit the table with his fist
2.
to come into violent contact with
the car hit the tree
3.
to reach or strike with a missile, thrown object, etc
to hit a target
4.
to make or cause to make forceful contact; knock or bump
I hit my arm on the table
5.
to propel or cause to move by striking
to hit a ball
6. cricket
to score (runs)
7.
to affect (a person, place, or thing) suddenly or adversely
his illness hit his wife very hard
8.
to become suddenly apparent to (a person)
the reason for his behaviour hit me and made the whole episode clear
9.
to achieve or reach
to hit the jackpot
unemployment hit a new high
10.
to experience or encounter
I've hit a slight snag here
11. slang
to murder (a rival criminal) in fulfilment of an underworld contract or vendetta
12.
to accord or suit (esp in the phrase hit one's fancy)
13.
to guess correctly or find out by accident
you have hit the answer
14. informal
to set out on (a road, path, etc)
let's hit the road
15. informal
to arrive or appear in
he will hit town tomorrow night
16. informal, mainly US and Canadian
to demand or request from
he hit me for a pound
17. slang
to drink an excessive amount of (alcohol)
to hit the bottle
18. hit it
19. hit skins
20. hit the sack
21. not know what has hit one
noun
22.
an impact or collision
23.
a shot, blow, etc, that reaches its object
24.
an apt, witty, or telling remark
25. informal
a.
a person or thing that gains wide appeal
she's a hit with everyone
b.
(as modifier)
a hit record
26. informal
a stroke of luck
27. slang
a.
a murder carried out as the result of an underworld vendetta or rivalry
b.
(as modifier)
a hit squad
28. slang
a drag on a cigarette, a swig from a bottle, a line of a drug, or an injection of heroin
29. computing
a single visit to a website
30. make a hit with
Word origin
Old English hittan, from Old Norse hitta
hit in American English
(hɪt)
verb transitiveWord forms: hit or ˈhitting
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 ignite the combustible mixture in its cylinders
said of an internal-combustion engine
22. US, Baseball
to get a base hit
noun
23.
a blow that strikes its mark
24.
a collision of one thing with another
25.
an effectively witty or sarcastic remark
26.
a stroke of good fortune
27.
a successful and popular song, singer, book, author, etc.
28. Informal
a.
an instance of finding or matching particular data in a computer search
b.
an instance of being accessed: said of a website
29. US, Slang
a murder, as by a hired murderer or an assassin
30. Slang
a dose of a drug, a drink of alcoholic liquor, etc.
31. Backgammon
a game won by a player after one or more of the opponent's men have been removed from the board
32. US, Baseball
base hit
Idioms:
hit it off
hit off
hit on
hit or miss
hit (out) at
hit over the head
hit the fan
hit the ground running
hit the road
Derived forms
hitter (ˈhitter)
noun
Word origin
ME hitten < OE hittan < ON hitta, to hit upon, meet with < IE base *keid-, to fall > Welsh cwydd, a fall
More idioms containing
hit
hit a home run
hit home
make a hit
a hit list
hit it off
hit and miss
hit the ground running
hit the deck
hit the buffers
hit the bottle
hit the jackpot
hit pay dirt
hit the road
hit rock bottom
hit the sack
hit the spot
hit your stride
hit the big time
hit the wall
hit the mark
hit the nail on the head
Examples of 'hit' in a sentence
hit
The tackles most likely to cause a head injury were those where head hit head.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
To see a funeral car hit a pub is something very unusual.
The Sun (2017)
The scrutiny on the hit will make it too draconian for some.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
This is in turn would hit his bottom line.
Times, Sunday Times (2017)
What happens if you hit something?
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
This is not so much the sequel as the original LP that gave birth to the hit single.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
The charges are a blow to motorists hit by soaring costs.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
Avoid the crowds and hit the website for these classic navy cotton pants.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
They have been hit hard by injuries and sit in sixth place.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
They were hit with such force that they were hurled on to the opposite carriageway.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
Then suddenly we were hit by major departures.
The Sun (2011)
The car took hits over the years.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
She just knows how to make hits.
The Sun (2013)
It was a case of an irresistible force hitting an immovable object.
Times, Sunday Times (2006)
Yours is a typical scenario of being hit by a massive termination fee.
The Sun (2015)
The temptation to hit the bottle must be overwhelming.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Then the company was hit last year by heavy rains.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
The phone was almost as big a hit as the film.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
One blow hit me in the head so hard it took a chunk out of my skull.
The Sun (2012)
The landing area is small and hard to hit.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
The forces that hit you in the entertainment industry can be powerful.
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
Who really wrote that hit single?
Times, Sunday Times (2015)
It is very easy to have a hit play on Broadway.
Sidney Sheldon The Other Side of Me
Our website hits are going up 10-15% a month.
Times, Sunday Times (2008)
It's like being hit over the head.
The Sun (2007)
Quotations
A hit, a very palpable hitWilliam ShakespeareHamlet
In other languages
hit
British English: hit /hɪt/ NOUN
A hit is the act of a moving object touching another object very quickly or hard.
...a hit on the head.
American English: hit
Arabic: ضَرْبَة
Brazilian Portuguese: batida colisão
Chinese: 打击
Croatian: pogodak
Czech: náraz
Danish: træffer
Dutch: klap
European Spanish: golpe impacto
Finnish: isku
French: coup
German: Schlag
Greek: χτύπημα
Italian: successo
Japanese: 衝突
Korean: 타격
Norwegian: støt slag
Polish: uderzenie kolizja
European Portuguese: batida
Romanian: lovitură
Russian: удар
Latin American Spanish: golpe
Swedish: succé
Thai: การตี
Turkish: çarpma
Ukrainian: удар
Vietnamese: cú đánh
British English: hit /hɪt/ VERB
If you hit something, you touch it with a lot of strength.
She hit the ball with the bat.
American English: hit
Arabic: يُصِيبُ
Brazilian Portuguese: bater
Chinese: 打击
Croatian: udariti
Czech: udeřit
Danish: ramme
Dutch: slaan
European Spanish: golpear
Finnish: lyödä
French: heurter
German: schlagen
Greek: χτυπώ
Italian: colpire
Japanese: 打つ
Korean: (...을) 때리다 충돌
Norwegian: slå
Polish: uderzyć
European Portuguese: bater
Romanian: a lovi
Russian: ударять
Latin American Spanish: golpear
Swedish: slå smälla till
Thai: ตี
Turkish: vurmak
Ukrainian: бити
Vietnamese: đánh
All related terms of 'hit'
mishit
a faulty shot or stroke
overhit
to hit too strongly
hit it
start playing
hit on
If you hit on an idea or a solution to a problem , or hit upon it, you think of it.
hit up
to make contact with (someone), often with a view to receiving money, a favour , etc
hit man
a hired assassin , esp one employed by gangsters
hit off
to represent or mimic accurately
hit out
If you hit out at someone, you try to hit them, although you may miss them.
base hit
a play in which the batter hits a fair ball and gets on base without benefit of an opponent's error and without forcing out a runner already on base
free hit
in certain forms of cricket , esp one-day internationals , after the bowler has bowled a no-ball , a chance for a batsman to strike a ball without the possibility of being caught out
hard-hit
seriously affected or hurt
hit back
If you hit back when someone hits you, or hit them back , you hit them in return .
hit home
if a situation or what someone says hits home or strikes home, people realize that it is real or true , even though it may be painful for them to accept it
hit list
If someone has a hit list of people or things, they are intending to take action concerning those people or things.
hit rate
level of success in shooting accurately at targets
hit show
a successful and popular show on television or in the theatre
hit skins
to have sexual intercourse
hit-skip
→ hit-and-run (sense 1 )
hit squad
a team of hired assassins
hit upon
king-hit
a knockout blow , esp an unfair one
pinch-hit
If you pinch-hit for someone, you do something for them because they are unexpectedly unable to do it.
smash hit
A smash hit or a smash is a very popular show , play , or song .
song hit
a song , usually a pop song, which is well known and which sold well when released . Also called a hit or a hit song.
direct hit
If a place suffers a direct hit , a bomb, bullet , or other missile that has been aimed at it lands exactly in that place, rather than some distance away .
hit parade
The hit parade is the list of CDs which have sold most copies over the previous week or month .
hit single
a successful and popular song which has sold many copies
hit wicket
an instance of a batsman breaking the wicket with the bat or a part of the body while playing a stroke and so being out
switch hit
to be able to bat from either side of the plate, or both as a left-handed and as a right-handed batter
a hit list
a group of people or things that someone intends to take action about, for example by punishing them or getting rid of them
hit it off
If two people hit it off , they like each other and become friendly as soon as they meet .
make a hit
If you make a hit with someone, they like you or are impressed by you when they meet you.
be hard hit
To be hard hit by something means to be affected very severely by it.
hit and miss
If something is hit and miss or hit or miss , it is sometimes successful and sometimes not.
hit-and-run
A hit-and-run accident is an accident in which the driver of a vehicle hits someone and then drives away without stopping.
hit or miss
without regard to success or failure ; in a haphazard or aimless way
hit (out) at
to aim a blow at; try to hit
hit pay dirt
to find or achieve something important and valuable
hit the deck
If someone or something hits the deck , they fall to the ground.
hit the dirt
to drop to the ground
hit the fan
to become suddenly embarrassing , troublesome , etc.; have a strong negative effect
hit the hay
to go to bed
hit the line
to try to carry the ball through the opposing line
hit the mark
to be very good, and to succeed in pleasing people
hit the road
to begin a journey
hit the roof
to get extremely angry ; become furious
hit the sack
to go to bed
hit the silk
to parachute from an aircraft
hit the spot
to be very good and to succeed in pleasing people
hit the wall
to reach a point where you cannot go any further or achieve any more
Chinese translation of 'hit'
hit
(hɪt)
Word forms:ptpphit
vt
(= strike)[person, thing]打 (dǎ)
⇒ He hit me on the head.他打了我的头。 (Tā dǎle wǒ de tóu.)
(= collide with)[car, tree, wall]碰撞 (pèngzhuàng)
⇒ The truck had hit a wall.卡车撞了墙。 (Kǎchē zhuàngle qiáng.)
[target]
[bomb, bullet]击(擊)中 (jīzhòng)
⇒ a missile that could hit its target with deadly accuracy一个命中率极高的导弹 (yī gè mìngzhònglǜ jígāi de dǎodàn)
[bomber, gunner]命中 (mìngzhòng)
⇒ He hit the bull's eye and won the prize.他命中了靶心，赢了奖。 (Tā mìngzhòngle bǎxīn, yíngle jiǎng.)