BELOW THE BELT | English meaning - Cambridge Dictionary
/ Sign up
English (UK)

Meaning of below the belt in English

below the belt

idiom   informal
Add to word list Add to word list
If a remark is below the belt, it is very insulting and unfair.
SMART Vocabulary: related words and phrases
Unkind, cruel & unfeeling
See more results »
Examples from literature
  • If my hair was as simple a matter as yours—" this hit at his unprotected pate seemed rather a blow below the belt—"there would be no difficulty. 
  • It was mean of Rosalind to hit below the belt like that, when she knew that she was safe. 
  • The press inspired by Senator Winter had begun to strike below the belt. 
  • We say a person has "hit below the belt" if we think he has done or said something unfair in an argument or quarrel. 
  • Willie has handed me several little blows below the belt that I don't like. 
(Definition of below the belt from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press)

Translations of below the belt

in Chinese (Traditional)
暗箭傷人的, 不公正的…
See more
in Chinese (Simplified)
暗箭伤人的, 不公正的…
See more
Need a translator?

Get a quick, free translation!

Translator tool
 

Browse

below
below decks phrase
below investment grade
below par
below the belt idiom
below the fold
below-cost price
below-the-line
below/above stairs idiom

Word of the Day

reptile

UK
/ˈrep.taɪl/
US
/ˈrep.taɪl/

an animal that produces eggs and uses the heat of the sun to keep its blood warm

About this

Blog

Worse than or worst of all? How to use the words ‘worse’ and ‘worst’

New Words

brokefishing

More new words
has been added to list
To top
Contents
EnglishTranslations
English (UK)   Change
English (UK) English (US) Español Русский Português Deutsch Français Italiano 中文 (简体) 正體中文 (繁體) Polski 한국어 Türkçe 日本語 Tiếng Việt Nederlands Svenska Dansk Norsk हिंदी বাঙ্গালি मराठी ગુજરાતી தமிழ் తెలుగు Українська
Follow us
Choose a dictionary
  • Recent and Recommended
  • Definitions
    Clear explanations of natural written and spoken English
    English Learner’s Dictionary Essential British English Essential American English
  • Grammar and thesaurus
    Usage explanations of natural written and spoken English
    Grammar Thesaurus
  • Pronunciation
    British and American pronunciations with audio
    English Pronunciation
  • Translation
    Click on the arrows to change the translation direction.
    Bilingual Dictionaries
    • English–Chinese (Simplified) Chinese (Simplified)–English
    • English–Chinese (Traditional) Chinese (Traditional)–English
    • English–Dutch Dutch–English
    • English–French French–English
    • English–German German–English
    • English–Indonesian Indonesian–English
    • English–Italian Italian–English
    • English–Japanese Japanese–English
    • English–Norwegian Norwegian–English
    • English–Polish Polish–English
    • English–Portuguese Portuguese–English
    • English–Spanish Spanish–English
    • English–Swedish Swedish–English
    Semi-bilingual Dictionaries
    English–Arabic English–Bengali English–Catalan English–Czech English–Danish English–Gujarati English–Hindi English–Korean English–Malay English–Marathi English–Russian English–Tamil English–Telugu English–Thai English–Turkish English–Ukrainian English–Urdu English–Vietnamese
  • Dictionary +Plus
    Word Lists
Contents
My word lists

To add below the belt to a word list please sign up or log in.

Sign up or Log in
My word lists

Add below the belt to one of your lists below, or create a new one.

More
Go to your word lists
Tell us about this example sentence: