hit

I UK [hɪt] / US verb
Word forms "hit":
present tense I/you/we/they hit he/she/it hits present participle hitting past tense hit past participle hit
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1) [intransitive/transitive] to move quickly onto an object or surface, touching it with force

She threw her glass across the room and it hit the wall.

hit your head/knee/arm etc on/against something:

It's thought he may have fallen and hit his head on the kerb.

hit the ground/floor (= fall to the ground):

Try to roll as you hit the ground.

a) to deliberately move an object so that it touches another object with force

hit something with something:

The youngest child was hitting the table with a toy hammer.

b) to move your hand or an object onto someone's body with great force, so that you hurt them

Don't hit your brother!

hit someone on the shoulder/cheek/arm etc:

He hit me on the shoulder.

hit someone in the face/eye/stomach:

They hit me in the stomach.

hit someone with something:

James was hit with a stick.

c) to use something such as a bat to make a ball move

He hit the ball over the net.

d) if a vehicle hits someone or something, it moves against them with great force

She was hit by a speeding car.

The truck hit the wall.

My car was hit from behind by a lorry.

e) if something such as a bullet or bomb hits someone or something, it lands on them

She was hit by a stray bullet.

According to first reports, some bombs have hit schools and hospitals.

hit the target/bullseye:

None of the missiles hit their target.

2) [intransitive/transitive] to suddenly start to affect someone or something

Many houses have been without water since the storm hit.

The craze hit England in 1951.

He gasped as the pain hit him.

3) [transitive, often passive] to have a bad effect on someone or something

The people this legislation will hit hardest are the poor.

be hard/badly hit:

Local businesses have been hard hit by the recession.

4)

a) [transitive] informal to reach a particular state

a singer who hit the big time (= became very successful) in 1998

b) to reach a particular amount, level, or age

She hits forty this year and we're planning a big party.

5) [transitive] informal to reach a place, especially on your way to somewhere else

When you hit the traffic lights, turn left.

6) [transitive] informal to have a problem when you are trying to do something

hit a problem/bad patch:

We hit a problem when we tried to print the document.

The talks appear to have hit a snag.

7) [transitive] if an idea or the truth hits you, you suddenly realize it

It suddenly hit her that she would never see him again.

8) [transitive] spoken to press something such as a switch on a machine, vehicle, or computer in order to make it do something

She hit the brakes too late and the car skidded.

Just hit the Save button every few minutes.

9) [transitive] to achieve a particular score when you hit the ball in a sport such as baseball or cricket

Did anyone hit a home run (= in baseball)?

He hit a six (= in cricket).

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hit the roof/ceiling — spoken to become very angry

When I told him how much it cost, he just about hit the roof.

hit the sack/hay — informal to go to bed

hit the town/street etc — mainly journalism to go to a town, area etc, usually so that you can go shopping; mainly journalism to be available to buy for the first time

a new craze product that will soon hit the shops

- hit the ground running

- hit it off

- hit the nail on the head

- hit the road

- not know what hit you

Phrasal verbs:

- hit back

- hit for

- hit on

- hit out

- hit up

- hit upon

- hit with

See:

bottle I, home II, spot I

II UK [hɪt] / US noun [countable]
Word forms "hit":
singular hit plural hits
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1) a song that sells a very large number of copies

They played a lot of old hits from the 70s and 80s.

someone's greatest hits (= their most successful songs):

a CD of Madonna's greatest hits

hit single/album/record:

They only ever had one hit single.

a) a film, play, or show that is very successful and popular

The film was a massive hit at the box-office.

hit film/show

b) someone or something that people like very much

be/prove a hit:

The car proved an instant hit in the States.

hit with:

Geoff was a huge hit with the children.

make a hit with someone:

He's already made a big hit with the locals.

2)

a) an occasion when someone or something uses their hand or an object to touch another person or thing with a lot of force

b) an occasion when something such as a bomb or bullet lands on something, causing damage

direct hit:

The house she lived in during the war received a direct hit.

3)

a) a visit by someone to a particular website

Their website gets a couple of hundred hits a day.

b) a piece of information that a computer program finds for you

I searched for the name "Mundy" and got over 50 hits.

4) an occasion when a player hits the ball in a game

5) informal a murder that a criminal does for someone else, usually for money

6)

a) informal an occasion when someone uses an illegal drug

b) the effect that an illegal drug has on someone who uses it

•

- take a hit