/ straɪk; NAmE / verb , noun
■ verb
( struck , struck / strʌk; NAmE /)
HIT SB / STH
1.
[ vn ] ( formal ) to hit sb/sth hard or with force :
The ship struck a rock.
The child ran into the road and was struck by a car.
The tree was struck by lightning .
He fell, striking his head on the edge of the table.
The stone struck her on the forehead.
➡ note at hit
2.
( formal ) to hit sb/sth with your hand or a weapon :
[ vn ]
She struck him in the face.
He struck the table with his fist.
Who struck the first blow (= started the fight) ?
[also vnn ]
KICK / HIT BALL
3.
[ vn ] ( formal ) to hit or kick a ball, etc. :
He walked up to the penalty spot and struck the ball firmly into the back of the net.
ATTACK
4.
[ v ] to attack sb/sth, especially suddenly :
The lion crouched ready to strike.
Police fear that the killer may strike again.
OF DISASTER / DISEASE
5.
to happen suddenly and have a harmful or damaging effect on sb/sth :
[ v ]
Two days later tragedy struck.
[ vn ]
The area was struck by an outbreak of cholera.
THOUGHT / IDEA / IMPRESSION
6.
(not used in the progressive tenses) ( of a thought or an idea ) to come into sb's mind suddenly :
[ vn ]
An awful thought has just struck me.
I was struck by her resemblance to my aunt.
[ vn wh- ]
It suddenly struck me how we could improve the situation.
7.
strike sb (as sth) to give sb a particular impression :
[ vn ]
His reaction struck me as odd.
How does the idea strike you?
She strikes me as a very efficient person.
[ vn ( that )]
It strikes me that nobody is really in favour of the changes.
OF LIGHT
8.
[ vn ] to fall on a surface :
The windows sparkled as the sun struck the glass.
DUMB / DEAF / BLIND
9.
[ vn - adj ] [ usually passive ] to put sb suddenly into a particular state :
to be struck dumb / deaf / blind
OF WORKERS
10.
[ v ] strike (for sth) to refuse to work as a protest :
The union has voted to strike for a pay increase of 6%.
Striking workers picketed the factory.
MATCH
11.
to rub sth such as a match against a surface so that it produces a flame; to produce a flame when rubbed against a rough surface :
[ vn ]
to strike a match on a wall
The sword struck sparks off the stone floor.
[ v ]
The matches were damp and he couldn't make them strike.
OF CLOCK
12.
to show the time by making a ringing noise, etc.
SYN chime :
[ v ]
Did you hear the clock strike?
[ vn ]
The clock has just struck three.
MAKE SOUND
13.
[ vn ] to produce a musical note, sound, etc. by pressing a key or hitting sth :
to strike a chord on the piano
GOLD / OIL, etc.
14.
[ vn ] to discover gold, oil, etc. by digging or drilling :
They had struck oil!
GO WITH PURPOSE
15.
[ v + adv. / prep. ] strike (off / out) to go somewhere with great energy or purpose :
We left the road and struck off across the fields.
•
IDIOMS
- be struck by / on / with sb/sth
- strike a balance (between A and B)
- strike a bargain / deal
- strike a blow for / against / at sth
- strike fear, etc. into sb/sb's heart
- strike gold
- strike it rich
- strike (it) lucky
- strike a pose / an attitude
- strike while the iron is hot
- within striking distance (of sth)
—more at chord , hard adjective , home adverb , lightning noun , note noun , pay dirt
•
PHRASAL VERBS
- strike at sb/sth
- strike back (at / against sb)
- strike sb down
- strike sth off
- strike sb/sth off (sth)
- strike out
- strike out (at sb/sth)
- strike out | strike sb out
- strike sth out / through
- strike out (for / towards sth)
- strike up (with sth) | strike up sth
- strike up sth (with sb)
■ noun
OF WORKERS
1.
a period of time when an organized group of employees of a company stops working because of a disagreement over pay or conditions :
the train drivers' strike
a strike by teachers
an unofficial / a one-day strike
Air traffic controllers are threatening to come out on / go on strike .
Half the workforce are now (out) on strike .
The train drivers have voted to take strike action .
The student union has called for a rent strike (= a refusal to pay rent as a protest) .
—see also general strike , hunger strike
ATTACK
2.
a military attack, especially by aircraft dropping bombs :
an air strike
They decided to launch a pre-emptive strike .
HITTING / KICKING
3.
[ usually sing. ] an act of hitting or kicking sth/sb :
His spectacular strike in the second half made the score 2–0.
—see also bird strike , lightning
IN BASEBALL
4.
an unsuccessful attempt to hit the ball
IN BOWLING
5.
a situation in tenpin bowling when a player knocks down all the pins with the first ball
DISCOVERY OF OIL
6.
[ usually sing. ] a sudden discovery of sth valuable, especially oil
BAD THING / ACTION
7.
( NAmE ) strike (against sb/sth) a bad thing or action that damages sb/sth's reputation :
The amount of fuel that this car uses is a big strike against it.
•
IDIOMS
- three strikes and you're out | the three strikes rule
••
WORD ORIGIN
Old English strīcan go, flow and rub lightly , of West Germanic origin; related to German streichen to stroke, also to stroke . The sense deliver a blow dates from Middle English .