hit

HIT/hɪt/

Verbhits, hitting, hit

Noun pluralhits

40 meanings of hit

Practice

1
strikeverbtransitive
To strike a person or thing with part of your body, a weapon, or something you throw.
He hit the ball with the bat.
Please don't hit your brother.
UsageThe past form is also hit (not ~~incorrect: hitted~~).
Similarstrike, beat, whack, smack
Note
2
nouncountable
A song, movie, or game that becomes very popular and loved by many people.
Like a toy that suddenly everyone wants to buy.
Her new song became a huge hit overnight.
The movie turned into the biggest hit of the year.
UsageSay something is a hit, or a big hit with people.
Similarsuccess, smash, blockbuster, sensation, triumph
Oppositeflop, failure, bomb, dud
Note
3
verbtransitive
To touch or crash into something hard and fast.
Like a ball smacking hard into a wall.
The car hit a tree on the icy road.
Heavy rain can hit the windows during a storm.
Similarstrike, ram
Oppositemiss, avoid
Note
4
verbtransitive
To affect someone or something strongly, often suddenly or badly.
The drought will hit farmers hardest this year.
The recession hit the whole town very hard.
UsageOften hit hard or hit by something: towns hit by floods.
Similaraffect, damage, hurt, harm
5
verbcolloquialtransitive
To reach a certain level, number, or goal.
Sales hit a new record this year.
We hope to hit our target by Friday.
UsageSay hit a target or hit a record.
Similarreach, achieve, attain, meet, touch
Oppositemiss
Note
6
verbtransitive
To touch or strike a target in exactly the right spot.
Like landing a dart right in the middle of the board.
She hit the bullseye on her very first throw.
Try to hit the center of the board.
Similarstrike
Oppositemiss
7
verbcolloquialtransitive
To come out or become available to people, used especially of a movie, a product, or news.
The new phone will hit stores next Friday.
The news of their breakup hit the internet before breakfast.
UsageSay hit the shelves or hit theaters.
Similarreach
8
visitverbcolloquialtransitive
To visit a place quickly for a short time.
Let's hit the mall after lunch.
We hit three stores before they closed.
UsageSay hit the gym or hit the shops.
Similarvisit, try
Oppositeskip
9
press a keyverbtransitive
To press a button, key, or switch, for example to turn something on or off.
Just hit the green button to start the machine.
She hit enter to send the message.
UsageLike press: hit Enter.
Similarpress, push, tap, strike
10
nouncountable
In baseball, batting the ball and reaching base safely, not through a fielder's mistake or a play on another runner.
The shortstop's error meant the play was not scored as a hit.
She got two hits in last night's game.
Note
11
nouncountable
A blow or strike that lands on someone or something, like a punch or a bullet hitting its target.
The boxer took a hard hit to the jaw.
One solid hit knocked the glass off the table.
Similarblow, strike, impact
Oppositemiss
Note
12
very popularadjective
Very popular and very successful.
The studio released one hit movie after another.
Their hit song stayed at number one for weeks.
UsagePut it before a noun: a hit song. Or say it was a hit.
Similarsuccessful, popular, bestselling, chart-topping
Oppositeunsuccessful, failed, unpopular
13
nounfigurativelycountable
A sudden event that causes harm or damage.
The drought was a serious hit to local farmers.
Our town took a big hit when the factory closed.
UsageSay something took a hit, meaning it was harmed.
Similarblow, setback, knock
Oppositeboost, boon
Note
14
verbintransitive
To reach or succeed at what you were trying for, often by luck.
Most of his bets lose, but every now and then one will hit.
My lottery numbers finally hit last week!
Similarsucceed, work, click
Oppositefail, miss, flop
Note
15
at the plateverbintransitive
In baseball, to take your turn at bat.
Rookies often hit at the bottom of the lineup.
She hit second yesterday and reached base twice.
Similarbat
Note

Less common meanings

16
verbtransitive
To suddenly become very clear to someone, used about an idea or a fact.
Halfway to school, it hit me that I had left my lunch at home.
The news is so big that it may not hit you until tomorrow.
Similarstrike
Note
17
meet a problemverbcolloquialtransitive
To run into a problem or difficulty.
We hit a problem with the new software.
Drivers often hit heavy traffic on Friday evenings.
UsageSay hit a problem or hit traffic.
Similarencounter, meet, face, suffer
18
verbcolloquialintransitive
To flirt with someone or try to start a romantic or sexual relationship with them, used with "on".
Some guy at the party kept trying to hit on my sister.
Was the waiter hitting on you, or was he just being friendly?
Similarflirt
19
discoververbintransitive
To guess something correctly, or to discover it by chance.
She finally hit on the right answer after many tries.
Keep thinking and you might hit on the solution.
UsageSay hit on an idea or hit upon a plan.
Similarstumble, chance, happen
Note
20
page viewnouncountable
One visit or request recorded by a website's server.
Like a counter that clicks once every time someone opens the page.
The new blog got a thousand hits in its first week.
Each hit is logged automatically by the server.
Similarvisit, request
21
search resultnouncountable
A result that matches what you searched for online or on a computer.
Like each name on a list that matches what you were looking for.
My search returned over a thousand hits.
Each hit on the results page links to a website.
Similarresult, match
Note
22
planned murdernouncountable
A killing that is planned in advance, often ordered by someone else.
Police suspected the shooting was a planned hit.
The gang ordered a hit on a rival leader.
UsageSay a hit on someone, or order a hit.
Similarkilling, murder, assassination, execution
Note
23
kill someoneverbslangtransitive
To kill someone, usually because another person ordered it.
The crime boss hired a killer to hit his rival.
He hit the informant on orders from the cartel.
UsageUsed in crime talk: they had him hit.
Similarkill, murder, assassinate, eliminate, whack
Note
24
a raidnouncountable
A planned attack on a place, a person, or a group of people.
The squad carried out a hit on the enemy outpost.
Their first hit destroyed the supply depot before dawn.
Similarattack, strike, raid, assault
25
criticizeverbfigurativelytransitive
To attack someone, especially with words.
Critics hit the mayor for breaking his promises.
The press will hit any politician who lies.
UsageSay hit someone over a mistake.
Similarattack, criticize, slam, blast, lambaste
Oppositepraise, defend, laud
26
attack by seaverbtransitive
To attack a place, especially by landing forces from the sea.
The marines hit the beach at dawn.
They plan to hit the coastal base from the water.
Similarattack, strike, storm, assault, raid
Note
27
nouncolloquialcountable
One dose of a dangerous or addictive drug.
He took one more hit and finally felt calm.
The dealer sold her a single hit for twenty dollars.
Similardose, fix, shot
28
inhale smokeverbslangUStransitive
To breathe in smoke from a drug, especially marijuana.
He hit the joint and passed it to his friend.
She wants to hit the pipe one more time before leaving.
Similarpuff, toke, smoke
Note
29
verbtransitive
To work a certain muscle or part of the body during exercise.
Push-ups hit your chest and arms.
This stretch hits the muscles in your lower back.
Similarwork, target
Note
30
verbtransitive
In blackjack, to give a player another card, or to take one more card yourself.
He asked the dealer to hit him again.
The dealer hit me with a king, and I lost.
Note
31
have sexverbslangUStransitive
To have sex with someone.
He was only looking to hit that, nothing more serious.
After the party, his roommate asked if he hit that or just got her number.
Similarbed, bang, screw, shag
Note
32
start playingverbcolloquialtransitive
To start playing a song, beat, or note.
Hit the next track and turn it up.
The bandleader yelled, "Hit it!" and the music started.
UsagePeople say hit it! to start the music.
Similarplay, start (entry)
Note
33
verb
To crash or bump into a person or thing.
34
verb
In backgammon, to land on a single enemy piece and send it to the middle bar.
35
verb
To connect to or use a computer system.
36
noun
In Battleship, a guess that finds the other player's ship.
37
noundated
A very clever or fitting remark.
What late he called a blessing, now was wit, / And God's good providence, a lucky hit.
1733, [Alexander Pope], An Essay on Man.
38
noun
In backgammon, a move sending an enemy piece to the middle bar, so it must re-enter.
39
noun
In backgammon, a plain win after the loser has already taken some pieces off the board.
40
pronoundialectal
A local way of saying it.

Practice

Can you tell the meanings of hit apart? Answer 3 quick questions from this page, or write your own sentence and AI will check it.

Origin

From Old English hittan, meaning "to meet with" or "come upon," which came from Old Norse hitta, meaning "to strike" or "meet."

Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 3 facts

English hit derives from Old English hittan, meaning to meet with or come upon. en.wiktionary.org
Old English hittan derives from Old Norse hitta. en.wiktionary.org
Old Norse hitta meant to strike or meet. en.wiktionary.org