to deal a blow or stroke to

Hit the nail with the hammer.

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.

to reach with a missile, a weapon, a blow, or the like, as one throwing, shooting, or striking

Did the bullet hit him?

to succeed in striking

With his final shot he hit the mark.

Baseball .

to make (a base hit)

He hit a single and a home run.

bat 1 ( def. 14 ) .

to drive or propel by a stroke

to hit a ball onto the green.

to have a marked effect or influence on; affect severely

We were all hit by the change in management.

to assail effectively and sharply (often fol. by out )

The speech hits out at warmongering.

to request or demand of

He hit me for a loan.

to reach or attain (a specified level or amount)

Prices are expected to hit a new low. The new train can hit 100 mph.

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?

to land on or arrive in

The troops hit the beach at 0800. When does Harry hit town?

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.

to come or light upon; meet with; find

to hit the right road.

to agree with; suit exactly

I'm sure this purple shirt will hit Alfred's fancy.

to solve or guess correctly; come upon the right answer or solution

You've hit it!

to succeed in representing or producing exactly

to hit a likeness in a portrait.

Informal . to begin to travel on

Let's hit the road. What time shall we hit the trail?

to strike with a missile, a weapon, or the like; deal a blow or blows

The armies hit at dawn.

to come into collision (often fol. by against, on, or upon )

The door hit against the wall.

Slang . to kill; murder.

(of an internal-combustion engine) to ignite a mixture of air and fuel as intended

This jalopy is hitting on all cylinders.

to come or light (usually fol. by upon or on )

to hit on a new way.

an impact or collision, as of one thing against another.

a stroke that reaches an object; blow.

a stroke of satire, censure, etc.

a hit at complacency.

Baseball . base hit.

Backgammon .

a game won by a player after the opponent has thrown off one or more men from the board.

any winning game.

a successful stroke, performance, or production; success

The play is a hit.

Slang . a dose of a narcotic drug.

Computers .

(in information retrieval) an instance of successfully locating an item of data in the memory bank of a computer.

an instance of accessing a Web site.

Slang . a killing, murder, or assassination, esp. one carried out by criminal prearrangements. ?

hit off,

to represent or describe precisely or aptly

In his new book he hits off the American temperament with amazing insight.

to imitate, esp. in order to satirize.

hit on, Slang . to make persistent sexual advances to

guys who hit on girls at social events.

hit out,

to deal a blow aimlessly

a child hitting out in anger and frustration.

to make a violent verbal attack

Critics hit out at the administration's new energy policy.

hit up, Slang .

to ask to borrow money from

He hit me up for ten bucks.

to inject a narcotic drug into a vein. ?

hit it off

Informal . to be congenial or compatible; get along; agree

We hit it off immediately with the new neighbors. She and her brother had never really hit it off.

hit or miss

without concern for correctness or detail; haphazardly

The paint job had been done hit or miss.

hit the books

Slang . to study hard; cram.

hit the bottle

Slang . bottle ( def. 4 ) .

hit the high spots

to go out on the town; go nightclubbing

We'll hit the high spots when you come to town.

to do something in a quick or casual manner, paying attention to only the most important or obvious facets or items

When I clean the house I hit the high spots and that's about all. This course will hit the high spots of ancient history.

noun

failure , flop , loss

verb

fail , lose

noun

bang , bat , bell-ringer , belt , blow , bonk , box * , buffet , butt , chop , clash , clip , clout , collision , cuff * , fisticuff , glance , impact , knock , lick * , one-two punch * , paste * , pat , plunk , punch , rap , roundhouse , shock , shot , slap , slog , smack , smash , sock , spank , stroke , swat , swing , swipe , tap , uppercut , wallop , whammy * , whop , zap * , zinger , achievement , click , favorite , knockout , masterstroke , sellout , sensation , sro , triumph , winner , wow , crack , lick , pound , slug , thwack , welt , whack , wham , sleeper , drag , draw , puff , blood , homicide , killing

verb

bang , bash , bat , batter , beat , belt , blast , blitz , box * , brain * , buffet , bump , clap , clip , clobber , clout , club , crack , cudgel , cuff * , dab , ding * , flail , flax , flog , give a black eye , hammer * , hook , jab , kick , knock , knock around , knock out , ko , lace , lambaste , larrup , lather , let fly , let have it , lob , nail * , pellet , pelt , percuss , pop , pound , punch , rap , ride roughshod , slap , smack , sock , stone , swat , tap , thrash , thump , thwack , trash , uppercut , wallop , whack * , whang , bang into , butt , carom , clash , crash , glance , jostle , light , meet , meet head-on , pat , run into , scrape , sideswipe , smash , stumble , thud , achieve , affect , arrive at , attain , gain , influence , leave a mark , occur , overwhelm , reach , secure , strike , touch , catch , slam , slog , slug , smite , whack , wham , whop , hit on , surprise , batted , bludgeon , bunt , collide , conk , double , drive , grounder , homer , home run , impact , liner , popular , ram , sensation , shot , single , smote , success , triple , winner

phrasal verb

counter , reciprocate , retort , strike back , catch , surprise , arrive at , attain , come to , gain , get to