below the belt
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Related to below the belt: hit below the belt
below the belt
Unfairly targeted at one's weakness or vulnerability. The phrase refers to boxing, in which hitting an opponent below the waist is prohibited. I know she really wants the promotion, but telling the boss about my personal problems was below the belt. Even though you girls are enemies, I think it's below the belt to go out with her ex-boyfriend. Intentionally injuring an opponent is definitely below the belt.
hit below the belt
To unfairly target another person's weakness or vulnerability. The phrase refers to boxing, in which hitting an opponent below the waist is unacceptable. I know she really wants the promotion, but she hit below the belt when she told the boss about my personal problems.
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
hit someone below the belt
1. Lit. [for a boxer] to strike an opponent below the belt. (An unfair blow.) The champ hit the contender below the belt and the crowd began to boo like fury. Fred was hit below the belt and suffered considerably.
2. Fig. to deal someone an unfair blow. That's not fair! You told them I was the one who ordered the wrong-size carpet. That's hitting me below the belt. Todd hit below the belt when he said it was all her fault because she had become ill during the trip.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
below the belt
If someone says something that is below the belt, they say something cruel and unfair. He made a joke about her divorce which I thought was a bit below the belt. Note: In boxing, it is against the rules to hit an opponent below the level of their belt.
Collins COBUILD Idioms Dictionary, 3rd ed. © HarperCollins Publishers 2012
below the belt
unfair or unfairly; not in keeping with the rules.In boxing a blow below the belt is a low, and therefore unlawful, blow.
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
below the ˈbelt
(of a comment, attack, etc.) unfair and unkind: Her remarks about his age were a bit below the belt.This expression comes from boxing, and refers to the rule that forbids boxers from hitting each other below the waist.
Farlex Partner Idioms Dictionary © Farlex 2017
below the belt
Not according to the rules; unfairly.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
below the belt
Unfair behavior. The term comes from boxing, where the Marquess of Queensberry rules, formulated in 1865, prohibit striking an opponent there. It began to be used figuratively in the late nineteenth century.
The Dictionary of Clichés by Christine Ammer Copyright © 2013 by Christine Ammer