hit someone when they are down

English · Thesaurus

AI In plain words

Writing a short explanation…

Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.

hit someone when they are down

verb hits someone when they are down · hitting someone when they are down · hit someone when they were down

  1. idiomatic Synonym of kick someone when they are down (“make things worse for someone in a difficult position”). Not to hit a man when he is down is no item in Lord Stanley's code of honour;

    Similar: kick someone when they are down, strike someone when they are down

Talk about this word

Cite this
MLA

"hit someone when they are down." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/hit%20someone%20when%20they%20are%20down. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

hit someone when they are down. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/hit%20someone%20when%20they%20are%20down

Chicago

"hit someone when they are down." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/hit%20someone%20when%20they%20are%20down.

BibTeX
@misc{hit_someone_when_they_are_down_2026,
  title = {hit someone when they are down},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/hit%20someone%20when%20they%20are%20down},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}