strike back
phrasal verb
struck back; struck back also stricken back; striking back; strikes back
: to try to hurt someone who has hurt one or treated one badly
When he called her lazy, she immediately struck back by calling him fat.
—often + atHe angrily struck back at his critics.
Examples of strike back in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
But Biden struck back by calling out his Republican allies for imposing ever stricter bans in red states.
—
Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News, 28 June 2024
When one of their party is shot, Franck’s friends strike back.
—Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 27 June 2024
In theory, China could use its forces in the region to strike back at the Houthis or to escort commercial vessels into and out of the Red Sea.
—Aaron Glasserman, Foreign Affairs, 13 June 2024
And much of this content hails the shooters as these heroes or anti-heroes who are striking back against bullies.
—Taylor Wilson, USA TODAY, 22 Apr. 2024
See all Example Sentences for strike back 
Dave Goldiner, New York Daily News, 28 June 2024
When one of their party is shot, Franck’s friends strike back.
—Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 27 June 2024
In theory, China could use its forces in the region to strike back at the Houthis or to escort commercial vessels into and out of the Red Sea.
—Aaron Glasserman, Foreign Affairs, 13 June 2024
And much of this content hails the shooters as these heroes or anti-heroes who are striking back against bullies.
—Taylor Wilson, USA TODAY, 22 Apr. 2024
See all Example Sentences for strike back
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'strike back.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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Cite this Entry
“Strike back.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/strike%20back. Accessed 26 Jul. 2024.
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