strike

Etymology

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.

verb

1. (transitive, sometimes with out or through) To delete or cross out; to scratch or eliminate.
   Please strike the last sentence.
2. (physical) To have a sharp or sudden effect.
   1. (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.
      The 0812 Huddersfield-Sheffield service struck the stabiliser leg of a lorry being used to take away portable toilets after local repair work. December 29 2021, “Network News: RAIB: tighten up supervision after 27mph train sideswipe incident”, in RAIL, number 947, page 8
   2. (transitive) To give, as a blow; to impel, as with a blow; to give a force to; to dash; to cast.
   3. (intransitive) To deliver a quick blow or thrust; to give blows.
      A hammer strikes against the bell of a clock.
   4. (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
   5. (intransitive, dated) To run upon a rock or bank; to be stranded; to run aground.
      The ship struck in the night.
   6. (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.
   7. (intransitive) To sound by percussion, with blows, or as if with blows.
   8. (transitive) To cause or produce by a stroke, or suddenly, as by a stroke.
      to strike a light
   9. (transitive) To cause to ignite by friction.
      to strike a match
3. (transitive) To thrust in; to cause to enter or penetrate.
   A tree strikes its roots deep.
4. (personal, social) To have a sharp or severe effect.
   1. (transitive) To punish; to afflict; to smite.
   2. (intransitive) To carry out a violent or illegal action.
   3. (intransitive) To act suddenly, especially in a violent or criminal way.
      The bank robber struck on the 2nd and 5th of May.
   4. (transitive, figurative) 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.
   5. (transitive, dated) 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
   6. (transitive) To impress, seem or appear to (a person).
      Golf has always struck me as a waste of time.
   7. (transitive) To create an impression.
      The news struck a sombre chord.
   8. (sports) 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. December 28, 2010, Marc Vesty, “Stoke 0-2 Fulham”, in BBC
   9. 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, published from the originals by Thomas Moore, London; reprinted in Sermons and Discourses on Several Subjects and Occasions, volume II, London, 1820, page 25
      Court-virtues bear, like gems, the highest rate, / Born where Heav'n's influence scarce can penetrate. / In life's low vale, the soil the virtues like, / They please as beauties, here as wonders strike. 1734, Alexander Pope, An Epistle To The Right Honourable Richard Lord Viscount Cobham; reprinted in Henry W. Boynton, editor, The Complete Poetical Works of Alexander Pope (The Cambridge Edition of the Poets), Boston, New York: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1903, lines 141–144, page 159
   10. To affect by a sudden impression or impulse.
       The proposed plan strikes me favourably.
       I was struck dumb with astonishment.
   11. (intransitive, UK, obsolete, slang) To steal or rob; to take forcibly or fraudulently.
       Now we haue well bousd, let vs strike some chete. Now we have well drunk, let us steal something. 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 Hindley, editor, A Caveat or Warning for Common Cursetors, Vulgarly called Vagabonds, London: Reeves and Turner, 1871, page 119
       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 feate, and both courteouſly thanked the meale man and cloſely / went away with his purchaſe. He being thus dusted with meal, entreated the meal-man to wipe it out of his neck, and stooped down his head, the meal-man laughing to see him so arrayed and whited, was willing to shake off the meal, and while he was busy about that, the nip had stroken the purse and done his feat, and both courteously thanked the meal-man and closely went away with his purchase. 1591, Robert Greene, “A discourse, or rather discovery of the Nip and the Foist, laying open the nature of the Cutpurse and Pick-pocket.”, in 'The Second Part of Conny-catching', London: John Wolfe; reprinted in Alexander B. Grosart, editor, 'The Life and Complete Works in Prose and Verse of Robert Greene', volume 10, London, Aylesbury: Hazell, Watson and Viney, 1881, page 112
   12. (slang, archaic) 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
5. To touch; to act by appulse.
6. (transitive) To take down, especially in the following contexts.
   1. (nautical) To haul down or lower (a flag, mast, etc.)
   2. (by extension) To capitulate; to signal a surrender by hauling down the colours.
      The frigate has struck, sir! We've beaten them, the lily-livers!
   3. (intransitive, by extension) To stop working as a protest to achieve better working conditions.
      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)
   4. To dismantle and take away (a theater set; a tent; etc.).
      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
   5. To unfasten, to loosen (chains, bonds, etc.).
7. (intransitive) To set off on a walk or trip.
   They struck off along the river.
   I stumbled along through the young pines and huckleberry bushes. Pretty soon I struck into a sort of path that, I cal'lated, might lead to the road I was hunting for. It twisted and turned, and, the first thing I knew, made a sudden bend around a bunch of bayberry scrub and opened out into a big clear space like a lawn. 1913, Joseph C. Lincoln, chapter 1, in Mr. Pratt's Patients
8. (intransitive) To pass with a quick or strong effect; to dart; to penetrate.
9. (dated) To break forth; to commence suddenly; with into.
   to strike into reputation;  to strike into a run
10. (intransitive) To become attached to something; said of the spat of oysters.
11. (transitive) To make and ratify; to reach; to find.
    to strike a bargain, to strike a great bargain
    to strike a deal
    to strike an agreement
    to strike a compromise
    to strike a pact
    to strike a truce, to strike an uneasy truce
    to strike an accord
    to strike an alliance
    to strike a ceasefire
    to strike an armistice
    to strike a balance, to strike a delicate balance between
12. 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
13. To level (a measure of grain, salt, etc.) with a straight instrument, scraping off what is above the level of the top.
14. (masonry) To cut off (a mortar joint, etc.) even with the face of the wall, or inward at a slight angle.
15. To hit upon, or light upon, suddenly.
    My eye struck a strange word in the text.  They soon struck the trail.
16. (sugar-making, 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, Philadelphia: James Humphreys, 1806, page 46
17. To stroke or pass lightly; to wave.
18. (obsolete) To advance; to cause to go forward; used only in the past participle.
19. To balance (a ledger or account).

noun

1. (baseball) 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. (bowling) The act of knocking down all ten pins in on the first roll of a frame.
3. A work stoppage (or otherwise concerted stoppage of an activity) as a form of protest.
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
   He's got machine guns and hatchets and swords / And some missiles and foods with trans-fats / He will unleash mass destruction, you're dead / You just got smashed... by the ¶ Attack of the Wrath of the / War of the Death of the / Strike of the Sword of the / Blood... of the Beast 2008, Lich King (band), “Attack of the Wrath of the War of the Death of the Strike of the Sword of the Blood of the Beast”, in Toxic Zombie Onslaught
5. (finance) In an option contract, the price at which the holder buys or sells if they choose to exercise the option.
6. (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
7. (cricket) The status of being the batsman that the bowler is bowling at.
   The batsmen have crossed, and Dhoni now has the strike.
8. The primary face of a hammer, opposite the peen.
9. (geology) The compass direction of the line of intersection between a rock layer and the surface of the Earth.
10. 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.
11. (obsolete) Fullness of measure; the whole amount produced at one time.
    a strike of malt; a strike of coin
12. (obsolete, by extension) Excellence; quality.
13. An iron pale or standard in a gate or fence.
14. (ironworking) A puddler's stirrer.
15. (obsolete) The extortion of money, or the attempt to extort money, by threat of injury; blackmail.
16. 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). 2013-08-03, “Yesterday’s fuel”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8847
17. The strike plate of a door.
18. (fishing) 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
19. (philately) A cancellation postmark.