hit back

phrasal verb

hit back; hitting back; hits back

informal

: to attack or criticize someone after being attacked or criticized by them

Weary of her rival's accusations, the candidate hit back with an aggressive ad campaign.

The team hit back with a touchdown of their own.

—often + at

The Senator hit back at his critics.

Examples of hit back in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The Chiefs quickly hit back with running back Kareem Hunt dashing in from five yards early in the fourth to tie the game up again. —Jack Bantock, CNN Money, 7 Oct. 2025

The tornado that ended the 12-year gap actually hit back in June, but new damage analysis has upgraded a deadly twister initially categorized as an EF3 near Enderlin, North Dakota. —Doyle Rice, USA Today, 6 Oct. 2025

Female veterans hit back at Hegseth Hegseth's comments drew criticism from female veterans, particularly those who held combat roles. —Mary Kekatos, ABC News, 4 Oct. 2025

After the Dodgers went ahead with a pair of runs in the fourth, the Reds had a chance to reclaim the lead when TJ Friedl, Spencer Steer and Gavin Lux hit back-to-back singles, loading the bases with no outs. —Fabian Ardaya, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2025

Rhymes for hit back

• aback
• anzac
• attack
• backpack
• backtrack
• bareback
• blackjack
• brownback
• buyback
• callback
• cognac
• comeback