Word.ws English Dictionary

strike

/stiː.ɹaɪk/UK/stɹaɪk/

strike verb: to delete or cross out; to scratch or eliminate.

Verb

strike (third-person singular simple present strikes, present participle striking, simple past struck or (nonstandard) striked or (all obsolete) strook or stroke or strake, past participle struck or (see usage notes) stricken or (both obsolete) strucken or striken or strook)

  1. (sometimes, transitive) To delete or cross out; to scratch or eliminate.
    • Please strike the last sentence.
  2. (transitive) To hit.
    • Strike the door sharply with your foot and see if it comes loose. A bullet struck him. The ship struck a reef.
    • […]he at Philippi kept / His ſword e’ne like a dancer, while I ſtrooke / The leane and wrinkled Caſſius,[…]c. 1606–1607 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Anthonie and Cleopatra”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard...
    Synonyms:
    thump
  3. (transitive) To give, as a blow; to impel, as with a blow; to give a force to; to dash; to cast.
    • And they ſhall take of the blood and ſtrike it on the two ſide poſtes,[…]1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Exodus 12:7, column 2
    • Who would be free themselves must strike the blow?1812, Lord Byron, “Canto II”, in Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage. A Romaunt, London: […] [F]or John Murray, […]; William Blackwood, Edinburgh; and John Cumming, Dublin; by Thomas Davison, […], →OCLC...
  4. (intransitive) To deliver a quick blow or thrust; to give blows.
    • A hammer strikes against the bell of a clock.
    • Nay when? ſtrike now, or elſe the Iron cooles.1591 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Second Part of Henry the Sixt, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies. […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and...
  5. (transitive) To manufacture, as by stamping.
    • We will strike a medal in your honour.
    • [I]n practice, small deformations will occur in the shell on striking the shuttering, or... alternatively, some small deformations are due to slightly imperfect placing of the original formwork.1977, Jaques Heyman, Equilibrium of Shell Structures, Clarendon Press, Oxford, page 107
  6. (dated, intransitive) To run upon a rock or bank; to be stranded; to run aground.
    • The ship struck in the night.
  7. (transitive) To cause to sound by one or more beats; to indicate or notify by audible strokes. Of a clock, to announce (an hour of the day), usually by one or more sounds.
    • The clock struck twelve. The drums strike up a march.
    • I read with my watch upon the table, purposing to close my book at eleven o’clock. As I shut it, Saint Paul’s, and all the many church-clocks in the City—some leading, some accompanying, some following—struck that hour.1860 December – 1861 August, Charles Dickens, chapter XX, in Great Expectations […], volume II, London: Chapman and Hall, […], published October 1861, →OCLC, pages 328-329
  8. (intransitive) To sound by percussion, with blows, or as if with blows.
    • But hush! hark! a deep sound strikes like a rising knell!1816, Lord Byron, “Canto III”, in Childe Harold’s Pilgrimage. Canto the Third, London: […] [F]or John Murray, […], →OCLC, stanza XXI, page 13
  9. (transitive) To cause or produce by a stroke, or suddenly, as by a stroke.
    • to strike a light
    • And waving wide her mirtle wand / She ſtrikes a univerſall Peace through Sea and Land.1629, John Milton, “On the Morning of Christs Nativity”, in Poems of Mr. John Milton, […], London: […] Ruth Raworth for Humphrey Mosely, […], published 1646, →OCLC, The Hymn, stanza III, page 3
  10. (transitive) To cause to ignite by friction.
    • to strike a match
  11. (transitive) To thrust in; to cause to enter or penetrate.
    • A tree strikes its roots deep.
  12. To infest the flesh of a living vertebrate.
    • The blowflies come in March, but if a man shears then the flies don’t bother much. The flies strike young lambs, but then the lambing could be regulated.1937, Ion L. Idriess, Over the Range, Sydney: Angus and Robertson, published 1947, page 217
Show 36 more meaningsShow fewer meanings
  1. (transitive) To punish; to afflict; to smite.
    • Alſo to puniſh the iuſt is not good, nor to ſtrike princes for equitie.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Proverbs 17:26, column 2
  2. (intransitive) To carry out a violent or illegal action.
    • The Bat—they called him the Bat. Like a bat he chose the night hours for his work of rapine; like a bat he struck and vanished, pouncingly, noiselessly; like a bat he never showed himself to the face of the day.1920, Mary Roberts Rinehart, Avery Hopwood, “The Shadow of the Bat”, in The Bat: A Novel from the Play (Dell Book; 241), New York, N.Y.: Dell Publishing Company, →OCLC, page 6
  3. (intransitive) To act suddenly, especially in a violent or criminal way.
    • The bank robber struck on the 2nd and 5th of May.
  4. (figuratively, transitive) To impinge upon.
    • The first thing to strike my eye was a beautiful pagoda. Tragedy struck when his brother was killed in a bush fire.
    • In the old days, to my commonplace and unobserving mind, he gave no evidences of genius whatsoever. He never read me any of his manuscripts,[…], and therefore my lack of detection of his promise may in some degree be pardoned. But he had then none of the oddities and mannerisms which I hold to be...1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter I, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC, page 1
  5. (transitive) To impress, seem or appear to (a person).
    • Golf has always struck me as a waste of time.
    • I fancied at first the stuff was paraffin wax, and smashed the jar accordingly. But the odor of camphor was unmistakable. It struck me as singularly odd, that among the universal decay, this volatile substance had chanced to survive, perhaps through many thousand years.1895 May 7, H[erbert] G[eorge] Wells, “The Palace of Green Porcelain”, in The Time Machine: An Invention, New York, N.Y.: Henry Holt and Company, →OCLC, page 163
  6. (transitive) To create an impression.
    • The news struck a sombre chord.
    • The story struck the depressingly familiar note with which true stories ring in the tried ears of experienced policemen. No one queried it. It was in the classic pattern of human weakness, mean and embarrassing and sad.1963, Margery Allingham, “Eye Witness”, in The China Governess: A Mystery, London: Chatto & Windus, →OCLC, page 249
  7. To score a goal.
    • Defender Chris Baird struck twice early in the first half to help Fulham move out of the relegation zone and ease the pressure on manager Mark Hughes.2010 December 28, Marc Vesty, “Stoke 0-2 Fulham”, in BBC
  8. To make a sudden impression upon, as if by a blow; to affect with some strong emotion.
    • to strike the mind with surprise; to strike somebody with wonder, alarm, dread, or horror
    • In like manner the writings of mere men[…]strike and surprise us most upon our first perusal of them[…].1734, Francis Atterbury, “A Sermon Preached at the Rolls, December 24, 1710: The Baptist's Message to Jesus, and Jesus's Answer Explained”, in Sermons on Several Occasions, new edition, volume I...
  9. To affect by a sudden impression or impulse.
    • The proposed plan strikes me favourably.
    • I was struck dumb with astonishment.
  10. (UK, intransitive, obsolete, slang) To steal or rob; to take forcibly or fraudulently.
    • Now we haue well bousd, let vs strike some chete.1567, Thomas Harman, “The vpright Coſe cateth to the Roge. [The Upright Man speaketh to the Rogue.]”, in 'A Caveat or Warning for Common Cursitors, vulgarly called vagabonds'; reprinted in Charles...
    • Hee being thus duſted with meale, intreated the meale man to wipe it out of his necke, and ſtoopte downe his head: the meale man laughing to ſee him ſo rayed and whited, was willing to ſhake off the meal, and the whilſt, while hee was buſie about that, the Nippe had ſtroken the purſe and done his...Greene, Robert (2017), “A discourse, or rather discovery of the Nip and the Foist, laying open the nature of the Cutpurse and Pick-pocket.”, in Ex-Classics Project, retrieved 12 Dec 2019, The...
  11. (archaic, slang) To borrow money from; to make a demand upon.
    • I must borrow money, / And that some call a striking; [...]1655, James Shirley, 'The Gentleman of Venice'; reprinted in William Gifford, Alexander Dyce, editors, 'The Dramatic Works and Poems of James Shirley', volume 5, London: John Murray, 1833, page 6
  12. To touch; to act by appulse.
    • Let us conſider the red and white colours in Porphyre: Hinder light, but from ſtriking on it, and its Colours vaniſh[…].1689 (indicated as 1690), [John Locke], “Some Farther Considerations Concerning Our Simple Ideas”, in An Essay Concerning Humane Understanding. […], London: […] Eliz[abeth] Holt, for Thomas Basset...
  13. (transitive) To hook (a fish) by a quick turn of the wrist.
    • Of course, almost any fool could strike a fish if it lay quiet in very shallow water.1894, Outing and the Wheelman, volume 24, page 56
  14. (transitive) To haul down or lower (a flag, mast, etc.)
  15. (broadly, transitive) To capitulate; to signal a surrender by hauling down the colours.
    • The frigate has struck, sir! We've beaten them, the lily-livers!
    • He [King Charles II] ſent him [the Earl of Essex] Embaſſador to Denmark, where his behaviour in the affair of the flag gained him much reputation:[…]Lord Eſſex’s firſt buſineſs was to juſtify his behaviour in refuſing to ſtrike.[…]And he found very good materials to juſtify his conduct; ſince by...a. 1716 (date written), [Gilbert] Burnet, “Book III. Of the Rest of King Charles II’s Reign, from the Year 1673 to the Year 1685, in which He Died.”, in [Gilbert Burnet Jr.], editor, Bishop Burnet’s...
  16. (broadly, intransitive, transitive) To stop working as a protest to achieve better working conditions.
    • The workers striked for better wages.
    • Two men were put to work who could not set their looms; a third man was taken on who helped the inefficients to set the looms. The other weavers thought this was a breach of their union rules and 18 of them struck […]1889, New York (State). Dept. of Labor. Bureau of Statistics, Annual Report (part 2, page 127)
    Synonyms:
    strike work
  17. (broadly, dated, transitive) To quit (one's job).
    • It appears that a compositor had been engaged for the Northem Territory Times, and for a considerable time the editor seems to have led a comparatively unruffled existence; till in an evil hour the compositor was smitten with gold fever, and struck work.1887, Harriet W. Daly, Digging, Squatting, and Pioneering Life in the Northern Territory of South Australia, page 227
  18. (transitive) To dismantle and take away (a theater set; a tent; etc.).
    • “Strike the tent there!”—was the next order. As I hinted before, this whalebone marquee was never pitched except in port; and on board the Pequod, for thirty years, the order to strike the tent was well known to be the next thing to heaving up the anchor.1851 November 14, Herman Melville, “Merry Christmas”, in Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers; London: Richard Bentley, →OCLC, page 113
    • The crew struck the set with a ferocity hitherto unseen, an army more valiant in retreat than advance.1979, Texas Monthly, volume 7, number 8, page 109
  19. (transitive) To unfasten, to loosen (chains, bonds, etc.).
    • He struck my chains, and gently spake and smiled:
      As they were loosened by that Hermit old,
      Mine eyes were of their madness half beguiled,
      To answer those kind looks.1817 December, Percy Bysshe Shelley, “The Revolt of Islam. […]”, in [Mary] Shelley, editor, The Poetical Works of Percy Bysshe Shelley. […], volume I, London: Edward Moxon […], published 1839, →OCLC...
  20. (intransitive) To set off on a walk or trip.
    • They struck off along the river.
    • In February, 1883, Mr. Hosie again left Chʻung-chʻing, and proceeded north-west to Chʻêng-tu, the capital of the province of Ssŭ-chʻuan, by way of the brine and petroleum wells of Tzŭ-liu-ching....In June, 1884, Mr. Hosie again left Chʻung-chʻing, and form Ho Chou, a three days' journey to the...1885 October 8, “The British Association”, in Nature, volume 32, number 832, page 564
  21. (intransitive) To pass with a quick or strong effect; to dart; to penetrate.
    • Til a dart ſtrike through his liuer,[…]1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Proverbs 7:23, column 2
    • For if either the Story move us, or the Actor help the lameneſs of it with his performance, or now and then a glittering beam of wit or paſſion ſtrike through the obſcurity of the Poem, any of theſe are ſufficient to effect a preſent liking[…].1681, John Dryden, The Spanish Fryar: Or, the Double Discovery. […], London: […] Richard Tonson and Jacob Tonson, […], →OCLC, Act I, page 11
  22. (dated) To break forth; to commence suddenly; with into.
    • to strike into reputation; to strike into a run
  23. (intransitive) To become attached to something; said of the spat of oysters.
  24. (transitive) To make and ratify; to reach; to find.
    • to strike a bargain, deal or agreement
    • to strike a compromise
  25. To discover a source of something, often a buried raw material such as ore (especially gold) or crude oil.
    • to strike gold
    • Howard Franklin and Henry Madison strike gold on the Fortymile River...1998, “A Gold Rush Timeline”, in The Brasher Bulletin, volume 10, number 2, page 5
  26. To level (a measure of grain, salt, etc.) with a straight instrument, scraping off what is above the level of the top.
  27. To cut off (a mortar joint, etc.) even with the face of the wall, or inward at a slight angle.
  28. To hit upon, or light upon, suddenly.
    • My eye struck a strange word in the text. They soon struck the trail.
  29. (obsolete) To lade thickened sugar cane juice from a teache into a cooler.
    • In the teache the subject is still further evaporated, till it is judged sufficiently boiled to be removed from the fire. This operation is usually called striking; (i.e.) lading the liquor, now exceedingly thick, into the cooler.1793, Bryan Edwards, The History, Civil and Commercial, of the British Colonies in the West Indies, volume II, London: John Stockdale; republished in englarged and corrected edition, volume III...
  30. To stroke or pass lightly; to wave.
    • […]Beholde, I thought, He will[…]ſtrike his hand ouer the place, and recouer the leper.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, 2 Kings 5:11, columns 2–1
  31. (UK, dialectal) To apply or rub in liniment or ointment; to anoint.
    • The mother said nothing to this, but gave nurse a certain ointment, with directions that she should strike (i.e. rub) the child's eyes with it.1850, Thomas Keightley, The Fairy Mythology, London: H.G. Bohn, page 302
  32. (obsolete) To advance; to cause to go forward; used only in the past participle.
    • […]Well ſtrooke in yeares,[…]c. 1593 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedy of Richard the Third: […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and...
  33. (transitive) To balance (a ledger or account).
  34. (intransitive, obsolete) To become saturated with salt.
  35. (intransitive, obsolete) To run, or fade in colour.
  36. (US, intransitive, obsolete) To do menial work for an officer.

Noun

strike (plural strikes)

  1. A status resulting from a batter swinging and missing a pitch, or not swinging at a pitch when the ball goes in the strike zone, or hitting a foul ball that is not caught.
    • It was then I knew I had made my third mistake. Yes, three strikes right across the plate, and as I hollered "Honey, please wait" she was gone.1996, Lyle Lovett, “Her First Mistake”, in The Road to Ensenada
  2. The act of knocking down all ten pins on the first roll of a frame.
  3. A work stoppage (or otherwise concerted stoppage of an activity) as a form of protest.
    • After an eleven-week strike, it was management that finally blinked.
    Synonyms:
    walkout
  4. A blow or application of physical force against something.
    • Thus hand strikes now include single knuckle strikes, knife hand strikes, finger strikes, ridge hand strikes etc., and leg strikes include front kicks, knee strikes, axe kicks,[…]1990, Chris Traish, Leigh Olsson, An Overview of Martial Arts, page 14
    • […] and they could hear the rough sound, could hear too the first strikes of rain as though called down by the music.1996, Annie Proulx, Accordion Crimes
  5. (broadly) An attack, not necessarily physical.
    • air strike; first strike
  6. In an option contract, the price at which the holder buys or sells if they choose to exercise the option.
  7. (historical) An old English measure of corn equal to the bushel.
    • The sum is also used for the quarter, and the strike for the bushel.1882, James Edwin Thorold Rogers, A History of Agriculture and Prices in England, volume 4, page 207
  8. The status of being the batsman that the bowler is bowling at.
    • The batsmen have crossed, and Dhoni now has the strike.
  9. The primary face of a hammer, opposite the peen.
  10. The compass direction of the line of intersection between a rock layer and the surface of the Earth or another solid celestial body.
  11. An instrument with a straight edge for levelling a measure of grain, salt, etc., scraping off what is above the level of the top; a strickle.
  12. (obsolete) Fullness of measure; the whole amount produced at one time.
    • a strike of malt; a strike of coin
Show 9 more meaningsShow fewer meanings
  1. (broadly, obsolete) Excellence; quality.
    • […]our cellarer shall have orders to deliver to thee a butt of sack, a runlet of Malvesie, and three hogsheads of ale of the first strike, yearly—If that will not quench thy thirst, thou must come to court, and become acquainted with my butler.1819 December 20 (indicated as 1820), Walter Scott, chapter X, in Ivanhoe; a Romance. […], volume III, Edinburgh: […] Archibald Constable and Co.; London: Hurst, Robinson, and Co. […], →OCLC, pages...
  2. An iron pale or standard in a gate or fence.
  3. A puddler's stirrer.
  4. (obsolete) The extortion of money, or the attempt to extort money, by threat of injury; blackmail.
  5. The discovery of a source of something.
    • The dawn of the oil age was fairly recent. Although the stuff was used to waterproof boats in the Middle East 6,000 years ago, extracting it in earnest began only in 1859 after an oil strike in Pennsylvania. The first barrels of crude fetched $18 (around $450 at today’s prices).2013 August 3, “Yesterday’s fuel”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8847
  6. The strike plate of a door.
  7. A nibble on the bait by a fish.
    • I must admit that my focus was divided, which limited my fishing success. I made a few casts, then arranged my inanimate subjects and took photos. When my indicator went down on my first strike, I cleanly missed the hook up.2014, Michael Gorman, Effective Stillwater Fly Fishing, page 87
  8. A cancellation postmark.
  9. (historical) An imperfect matrix for type.

Proper noun capitalized: Strike

Strike (plural Strikes)

  1. A surname.

strike meaning in Hindi, Tamil, Marathi and Urdu

strike in Hindi

work stoppage
हड़ताल haṛtāl

strike in Tamil

to hit
படு paṭu
work stoppage
வேலைநிறுத்தம் vēlainiṟuttam

strike in Marathi

strike, blow
प्रहार prahār, वार vār, घात ghāt
strike, knock or hit someone or something
ठोकणे ṭhōkaṇē
to strike, hit
आपटणे āpaṭṇe

strike in Urdu

work stoppage
ہَڑْتال haṛtāl
More languagesFewer languages
strike in Bengali
কেটে ফেলা keṭe phela, আঘাত aghat, ধর্মঘট dhormoghoṭ
strike in Telugu
సమ్మె samme
strike in Malayalam
വെട്ടുക veṭṭuka, അടിയ്ക്കുക aṭiykkuka, സമരം samaraṁ
strike in Kannada
ಹೊಡೆ hoḍe, ಬೀಳು bīḷu
strike in Punjabi
ਵਜਾਉਣਾ vajāuṇā, ٹھپنا ṭhappṇā, ਹੜਤਾਲ਼ haṛtāḷ
strike in Gujarati
હડતાળ, હડતાલ
strike in Odia
ପ୍ରହାର କରିବା prahāra karibā, ବାଡ଼େଇବା bāṛeibā, ତାଡ଼ିବା tāṛibā
strike in Sanskrit
तुदति tudati
strike in Assamese
কাটি পেলোৱা kati pelüa, কোবোৱা kübüa, পিটা pita
strike in Nepali
ठोक्नु ṭhoknu
strike in Pashto
اعتصاب e'tesāb, هرټال harṭāl, هړتال harṭāl
strike in Tagalog
aklas, aklasan, welga
strike in Arabic
ضَرَبَ ḍaraba, إِضْرَاب ʔiḍrāb
strike in Malay
mogok
strike in Indonesian
menabrak, tabrak, mogok, pemogokan
strike in Persian
زدن zadan
strike in Thai
ตี dtii, นัดหยุดงาน nát-yùt-ngaan, การนัดหยุดงาน gaan-nát-yùt-ngaan
strike in Vietnamese
đánh, đình công, bãi công, sự bãi công
strike in Myanmar
သပိတ် sa.pit

Examples of strike in a sentence

  • to strike a truce, to strike an uneasy truce
  • to strike an accord, alliance, ceasefire or armistice
  • to strike a balance, to strike a delicate balance between

All 40 example sentences with strike

Synonyms of strike

Antonyms

All synonyms and antonyms of strike

Forms of strike

Verb
third-person singular presentstrikes
present participlestriking
paststruck
past (nonstandard)striked
past (obsolete)strook
past (obsolete)stroke
past (obsolete)strake
past participle (obsolete)struck
past participle (obsolete)stricken
past participle (obsolete)strucken
past participle (obsolete)striken
past participle (obsolete)strook
Noun
pluralstrikes
Proper noun
pluralStrikes

Past tense of strike: struck

Plural of strike: strikes

Origin of strike

From Middle English stryken, from Old English strīcan, from Proto-West Germanic *strīkan, from Proto-Germanic *strīkaną, from Proto-Indo-European *streyg- (“to stroke, rub, press”). Cognate with Dutch strijken, German streichen, Danish stryge, Icelandic strýkja, strýkva.

English surname, from the verb strike.

Words formed from strike

Phrases with strike

65 more phrasesFewer phrases

Words that rhyme with strike

33 more rhymesFewer rhymes

Questions about strike

What does strike mean?
Strike means to delete or cross out; to scratch or eliminate.
What is strike in Hindi?
Strike in Hindi is हड़ताल (haṛtāl). See Strike meaning in Hindi.
How do you use strike in a sentence?
to strike a truce, to strike an uneasy truce
What part of speech is strike?
Strike can be a verb, a noun or a proper noun.
How do you pronounce strike?
Strike is pronounced /stɹaɪk/ (UK).
What is the past tense of strike?
The past tense of strike is struck.

Words near strike in the dictionary

  1. strigulations
  2. strigulose
  3. striid
  4. striids
  5. strikable
  6. strike
  7. strike a balance
  8. strike a bargain
  9. strike a blow
  10. strike a chord
  11. strike a false note

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: strike (page history and authors); Strike (page history and authors); आपटणे (Marathi) (page history and authors); ಬೀಳು (Kannada) (page history and authors); ٹھپنا (Punjabi) (page history and authors); strike (Gujarati, IndicTrans2 machine translation) (model and license); ତାଡ଼ିବା (Odia) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: En-us-strike.ogg.

Cite this entry: “strike.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/strike. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.