headbutt

noun

head·​butt ˈhed-ˌbət 

variants or head-butt or head butt

plural headbutts or head-butts or head butts

: a violent blow with the forehead or crown of the head especially into the face or head of another person

I took the offensive next, figuring a headbutt to the bridge of his nose would be a strategic response …

—Corwin Ericson

A fearless former BMX racer … , McEwen uses elbows, shoulders and an occasional head butt to fight for position in the sprint.

—Michael Henson

headbutt verb, transitive + intransitive

or head-butt

headbutted or head-butted; headbutting or head-butting; headbutts or head-butts

When Mr. Bartle got up, Gordon headbutted him, breaking his nose and leaving him needing an operation …

—Rob Kennedy

It has been awhile since Dennis Rodman head-butted Chicago's Stacey King and was ejected from a game …

—Joe Menzer

Ordinary soccer brutes head-butt to break an opponent's nose.

—Time

headbutter noun

or head-butter

plural headbutters or head-butters

The others, skinny kids from Leeds, were headbutters and kickers and they got into a corner and took out several locals before Cashin … got there.

—Peter Temple

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web

But while the headbutt was strong enough to do some damage to Francona’s eyewear, Naylor came away unscathed. —Ashley Bastock, cleveland, 30 June 2022

Mikkelsen convinced his director, and the film's insurance company, to let himdo the mirror headbutt. —Bryan Alexander, USA TODAY, 13 May 2021

The lead-up to the headbutt involved numerous physical plays, including a few between Antetokounmpo and Wagner. —Matt Velazquez, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 11 Aug. 2020

Crystal Palace beat Southampton 1-0 for a third straight home win while Brentford settled for 1-1 against Wolverhampton, whose striker Diego Costa was sent off for a headbutt in stoppage time. —Mattias KarÉn, ajc, 29 Oct. 2022

The same could not be said of manager Terry Francona, who received a full-on headbutt from his rambunctious slugger when the two met in front of the Guardians dugout. —Joe Noga, cleveland, 30 June 2022

So did a celebratory headbutt from tight end Tyler Higbee. —Los Angeles Times, 24 Jan. 2022

But before the period had ended, Buchnevich was tossed from the game for a headbutt on Arizona's Lawson Crouse. —José M. Romero, The Arizona Republic, 19 Oct. 2021

A half-dozen Detroit Lions mobbed him in the end zone, including quarterback Matthew Stafford, who greeted Peterson with a resounding headbutt. —Dave Birkett, Detroit Free Press, 6 Dec. 2020

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Word History

First Known Use

1925, in the meaning defined above