Definition of 'hit'
Word forms: plural, 3rd person singular present tense hits
, present participle hitting
language 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.
5. verb
When a feeling or an idea hits you, it suddenly affects you or comes into your mind.
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]
7. countable noun [oft NOUN noun]
If a CD, film, or play is a hit, it is very popular and successful.
9. countable noun
10.
See hit it off
11.
See make a hit
14. to hit home
16. to hit the road
17. to hit the roof
Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
British English pronunciation
American English pronunciation
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Word Frequency
hit in British English
verbWord forms: hits, hitting, 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
6. cricket
to score (runs)
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
17. slang
to drink an excessive amount of (alcohol)
to hit the bottle
18. See hit it
19. See hit skins
20. See hit the sack
21. See not know what has hit one
noun
23.
a shot, blow, etc, that reaches its object
25. informal
b.
(as modifier)
a hit record
27. slang
a.
a murder carried out as the result of an underworld vendetta or rivalry
b.
(as modifier)
a hit squad
30. See make a hit with
Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers
Word origin
Old English hittan, from Old Norse hittaWord Frequency
hit in American English
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
7.
to come upon by accident or after search; find; light upon
to hit the right answer
9.
to go to; visit
we hit all the art galleries in town
10.
strike (sense 8) strike (sense 9) strike (sense 10) (variously)
11. US, 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. US, Slang
to murder
said as of a hired murderer or an assassin14. Slang
to supply with a drug, etc.
15. US, Baseball
to get (a specified base hit)
to hit a double
16. US, Blackjack
to deal another card to
verb intransitive
17.
to give a blow or blows; strike
18.
to attack suddenly
19.
to knock, bump, or strike
usually with against20.
to come by accident or after search
with on or upon22. 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.
31. Backgammon
a game won by a player after one or more of the opponent's men have been removed
from the board
Idioms:
Webster’s New World College Dictionary, 4th Edition. Copyright © 2010 by
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.
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
Word Frequency
hit in American English
(hɪt) (verb hit, hitting)
transitive verb
1.
to deal a blow or stroke to
Hit the nail with the hammer
2.
to come against with an impact or collision, as a missile, a flying fragment, a falling body, or the like
The car hit the tree
3.
to reach with a missile, a weapon, a blow, or the like, as one throwing, shooting,
or striking
Did the bullet hit him?
6.
to drive or propel by a stroke
to hit a ball onto the green
7.
to have a marked effect or influence on; affect severely
We were all hit by the change in management
9.
to request or demand of
He hit me for a loan
10.
to reach or attain (a specified level or amount)
Prices are expected to hit a new low
The new train can hit 100 mph
11.
to be published in or released to; appear in
When will this report hit the papers?
What will happen when the story hits the front page?
12.
to land on or arrive in
The troops hit the beach at 0800
When does Harry hit town?
13.
to give (someone) another playing card, drink, portion, etc
If the dealer hits me with an ace, I'll win the hand
Bartender, hit me again
14.
to come or light upon; meet with; find
to hit the right road
17.
to succeed in representing or producing exactly
to hit a likeness in a portrait
18. informal
to begin to travel on
Let's hit the road
What time shall we hit the trail?
intransitive verb
19.
to strike with a missile, a weapon, or the like; deal a blow or blows
The armies hit at dawn
20. (often fol. by against, on, or upon)
to come into collision
The door hit against the wall
21. slang
to kill; murder
22. (of an internal-combustion engine)
to ignite a mixture of air and fuel as intended
This jalopy is hitting on all cylinders
23. (usually fol. by upon or on)
to come or light
to hit on a new way
24. See hit it off
25. See hit off
26. See hit on
27. See hit out
28. See hit the books
29. See hit the bottle
30. See hit the high spots
31. See hit up
noun
SYNONYMS 1. See strike, beat. 33, 35, 37. See blow132.
an impact or collision, as of one thing against another
33.
a stroke that reaches an object; blow
36. Backgammon
a.
a game won by a player after the opponent has thrown off one or more players from
the board
b.
any winning game
37.
a successful stroke, performance, or production; success
The play is a hit
39.
a. Computing (in information retrieval)
an instance of successfully locating an item of data in the memory bank of a computer
b.
an instance of accessing a website
41. See hit or miss
Most material © 2005, 1997, 1991 by Penguin Random House LLC. Modified entries © 2019
by Penguin Random House LLC and HarperCollins Publishers Ltd
Derived forms
hitless adjective
hittable
adjective
hitter
noun
Word origin
[bef. 1100; 1865–70, Amer. for def. 5a; ME hitten, OE hittan; perh. ‹ Scand; cf. ON hitta to come upon (by chance), meet with]Examples of 'hit' in a sentence
hit
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Quotations
A hit, a very palpable hitHamlet
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hit
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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 /ˈhɪt/
- 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, แรงปะทะ, การชน
- 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 /ˈhɪt/
- 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
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Definition of hit from the Collins English Dictionary
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