kick in

verb

|Updated on: 6 Aug 2018

Examples: kick in in a Sentence

Definition of kick in

transitive verb

: contribute

intransitive verb

1 : to begin operating or having an effect : get started

waiting for the heater to kick in

2 : to make a contribution

3 slang : die

See kick in defined for kids

Examples of kick in in a Sentence

if everyone in the department kicks in, we can give him an especially nice present for his retirement
the ornery cuss finally kicked in at the ripe old age of 90

Recent Examples of kick in from the Web

One dose in the morning delivers enough of a kick in the pants for an entire day.

— joe jackson, Outside Online, "The MugMate Is the Best Camp Coffeemaker, Hands Down," 13 July 2018
Until Germany’s star midfielder rifled in a destiny-changing free-kick in the final moments of his team’s clash with Sweden on Saturday night, Mexico was in glorious shape.

— martin rogers, USA TODAY, "Mexico could still face disaster in World Cup despite two wins," 24 June 2018
Proponents say blockchain – the ledger where transactions of digital currencies, like bitcoin, are recorded – could be the kick in the pants Wyoming needs to attract tech businesses and diversify its economy beyond fossil fuels.

— mead gruver, The Christian Science Monitor, "Wyoming tries to attract blockchain business," 23 May 2018
The Northwestern recruit powered past numerous runners with a strong kick in the final half lap to place second in the 3,200 meters in a program-record time of 10 minutes, 25.01 seconds.

— bob narang, chicagotribune.com, "Girls track notes: Jocelyn Long's Barrington career ends with top-three medals," 22 May 2018
The Magic entered the night with a 36 percent chance — the most likely of all outcomes — of dropping to sixth, but the result still felt like a kick in the gut.

— josh robbins, OrlandoSentinel.com, "After disappointing lottery result, the Magic must make their own luck," 17 May 2018
Centrowitz, the 2016 Olympic gold medalist in the 1,500 and a member of the Nike Oregon Project, won his section with a furious kick in 3:38.99.

— ken goe, OregonLive.com, "Ex-Oregon runner Johnny Gregorek betters a tough field to win 1,500 at USATF Distance Classic," 17 May 2018
And if on the day Hamels goes and Banister still needs four other pitchers ... then the best version of the Texas Rangers is a kick in the face, too.

— mac engel, star-telegram, "Cole Hamels' start isn't the problem, his situation is," 29 Mar. 2018
The friend, the members say, got a kick in the crotch for her trouble.

— leor galil, Chicago Reader, "Archive Dive / Music What caused the melee outside a Public Enemy and Sonic Youth show at the Aragon in 1990?," 23 Feb. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'kick in.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.