English Dictionary

Definition of “striking”

Browse the English dictionary (A-Z)

striking (ˈstraɪkɪŋPronunciation for striking) 

Definitions

adjective

  1. attracting attention; fine; impressive  ⇒ a striking beauty 
  2. conspicuous; noticeable  ⇒ a striking difference 

Alternative Forms

ˈstrikingly adverb ˈstrikingness noun

strike (straɪkPronunciation for strike) 

Definitions

verb

Word forms: strikes, striking, struck
  1. to deliver (a blow or stroke) to (a person)
  2. to come or cause to come into sudden or violent contact (with)
  3. (tr) to make an attack on
  4. to produce (fire, sparks, etc) or (of fire, sparks, etc) to be produced by ignition
  5. to cause (a match) to light by friction or (of a match) to be lighted
  6. to press (the key of a piano, organ, etc) or to sound (a specific note) in this or a similar way
  7. to indicate (a specific time) by the sound of a hammer striking a bell or by any other percussive sound
  8. (of a venomous snake) to cause injury by biting
  9. (tr) to affect or cause to affect deeply, suddenly, or radically, as if by dealing a blow  ⇒ her appearance struck him as strange I was struck on his art 
  10. (tr; passive) with to render incapable or nearly so  ⇒ she was stricken with grief 
  11. (tr) to enter the mind of  ⇒ it struck me that he had become very quiet 
  12. to render  ⇒ I was struck dumb 
  13. (tr) to be perceived by; catch  ⇒ the glint of metal struck his eye 
  14. to arrive at or come upon (something), esp suddenly or unexpectedly  ⇒ to strike the path for home to strike upon a solution 
  15. (intr) out to set (out) or proceed, esp upon a new course  ⇒ to strike for the coast 
  16. (tr; usually passive) to afflict with a disease, esp unexpectedly  ⇒ he was struck with polio when he was six 
  17. (tr) to discover or come upon a source of (ore, petroleum, etc)
  18. (tr) (of a plant) to produce or send down (a root or roots)
  19. (tr) to take apart or pack up; break (esp in the phrase strike camp)
  20. (tr) to take down or dismantle (a stage set, formwork, etc)
  21. (tr) nautical 
    1. to lower or remove (a specified piece of gear)
    2. to haul down or dip (a flag, sail, etc) in salute or in surrender
    3. to lower (cargo, etc) into the hold of a ship
  22. to attack (an objective) with the intention of causing damage to, seizing, or destroying it
  23. to impale the hook in the mouth of (a fish) by suddenly tightening or jerking the line after the bait or fly has been taken
  24. (tr) to form or impress (a coin, metal, etc) by or as if by stamping
  25. to level (a surface) by use of a flat board
  26. (tr) to assume or take up (an attitude, posture, etc)
  27. (intr) (of workers in a factory, etc) to cease work collectively as a protest against working conditions, low pay, etc
  28. (tr) to reach by agreement  ⇒ to strike a bargain 
  29. (tr) to form (a jury, esp a special jury) by cancelling certain names among those nominated for jury service until only the requisite number remains See also special jury
  30. (tr) rowing to make (a certain number of strokes) per minute  ⇒ Oxford were striking 38 
  31. to make a stroke or kick in swimming
  32. (tr) (in Malaysia) to win (a lottery or raffle)
  33. See strike home
  34. See strike it lucky
  35. See strike it rich

noun

  1. an act or instance of striking
  2. a cessation of work by workers in a factory, industry, etc, as a protest against working conditions or low pay  ⇒ the workers are on strike again 
  3. a military attack, esp an air attack on a surface target  ⇒ air strike 
  4. baseball a pitched ball judged good but missed or not swung at, three of which cause a batter to be out
  5. ten-striketenpin bowling 
    1. the act or an instance of knocking down all the pins with the first bowl of a single frame
    2. the score thus made Compare spare (sense 17)
  6. a sound made by striking
  7. the mechanism that makes a clock strike
  8. the discovery of a source of ore, petroleum, etc
  9. the horizontal direction of a fault, rock stratum, etc, which is perpendicular to the direction of the dip
  10. angling the act or an instance of striking
  11. the number of coins or medals made at one time
  12. another name for strickle (sense 1)
  13. informal an unexpected or complete success, esp one that brings financial gain
  14. See take strike

See also

strike down , strike off , strike out , strike through , strike up

Alternative Forms

ˈstrikeless adjective

Word Origin

Old English strīcan;  related to Old Frisian strīka  to stroke, Old High German strīhhan  to smooth, Latin stria furrow

Synonyms

View thesaurus entry
= walkout, industrial action, mutiny, revolt, stop-work or stop-work meeting
= attack, bombing, assault, air strike, blitz,
= find, discovery, uncovering, unearthing,
= walk out, take industrial action down tools revolt, mutiny,
= hit, smack, thump, pound, beat, box, knock, punch, hammer, deck, slap, sock, chin, buffet, clout, cuff, clump, swipe, clobber, smite, wallop, lambast(e) lay a finger on, lay one on beat or knock seven bells out of
= drive, propel, force, hit, smack, wallop,
= collide with hit, run into, bump into, touch, smash into come into contact with knock into be in collision with
= knock, bang, smack, thump, beat, smite,
= affect, move, hit, touch, devastate, overwhelm, leave a mark on make an impact or impression on
= attack, assault someone fall upon someone set upon someone lay into someone
= attack, hit, affect, assault, devastate, invade, smite, assail, fall upon, set upon, deal a blow to
= occur to hit, come to, register, come to the mind of dawn on or upon
= seem to appear to look to, give the impression to
= move, touch, impress, hit, affect, overcome, stir, disturb, perturb, make an impact on
= agree on, settle on, come to an agreement on sign, sanction, endorse, clinch, ratify,
= achieve, arrive at, attain, reach, effect, arrange,
= assume, adopt, affect, take on, take up, feign,
= make, render, cause to become leave,
= ring, sound, toll, dong, peal, boom,
= delete, remove, erase, pull, eliminate, extract, get rid of, strike out, expunge, take away or off or out
= ignite, light, set alight touch off,
= discover, find, come upon or across reach, encounter, turn up, uncover, unearth, hit upon, light upon, happen or chance upon stumble upon or across reach, register,

Translations

  • British English: striking Pronunciation for striking Something that is striking is very noticeable or unusual.He bears a striking resemblance to his father.ˈstraɪkɪŋ ADJECTIVE He bears a striking resemblance to his father.
  • Spanish: asombroso Pronunciation for asombroso adj asombrosa
  • French: frappant Pronunciation for frappant adj
  • German: bemerkenswert Pronunciation for bemerkenswert adj
  • Chinese: 惊人的Pronunciation for 惊人的 adj
  • Arabic: لافِتٌ لِلْنَظَرPronunciation for لافِتٌ لِلْنَظَر adj
  • Portuguese: impressionantePronunciation for impressionante adj
  • Russian: поразительныйPronunciation for поразительный adj поразительная
  • Croatian: dojmljivPronunciation for dojmljiv adj dojmljiva
  • Czech: nápadnýPronunciation for nápadný adj
  • Danish: påfaldendePronunciation for påfaldende adj
  • Dutch: opvallendPronunciation for opvallend adj
  • Finnish: silmiinpistäväPronunciation for silmiinpistävä adj
  • Greek: εντυπωσιακόςPronunciation for εντυπωσιακός adj εντυπωσιακή
  • Italian: impressionantePronunciation for impressionante adj
  • Japanese: 目立つPronunciation for 目立つ no_posp
  • Korean: 인상적인Pronunciation for 인상적인 adj
  • Norwegian: påfallendePronunciation for påfallende adj
  • Polish: uderzającyPronunciation for uderzający adj uderzająca
  • Brazilian Portuguese: impressionantePronunciation for impressionante adj
  • European Spanish: asombroso Pronunciation for asombroso adj asombrosa
  • Swedish: slåendePronunciation for slående adj
  • Thai: ซึ่งโดดเด่นPronunciation for ซึ่งโดดเด่น adj
  • Turkish: çarpıcıPronunciation for çarpıcı adj
  • Vietnamese: đầy ấn tượngPronunciation for đầy ấn tượng adj

Usage examples

  • Hurriedly, he thrust them under his shirt, their chill striking his chest.
    Thomas, Craig, The Last Raven (1990)
  • On the Lupin Trail Lupins have always been celebrated as striking border plants.
    Country Life (2004)
  • Most striking is its protagonist, Alvin Straight, played by screen veteran Richard Farnsworth.
    Globe and Mail (2003)
  • Gilchrist then took the initiative, striking 19 runs in rapid time to take Australia past England's first innings total.
    Glasgow Herald (2001)
  • She was more than just pretty; she was vivacious and striking.
    Anne Bennett, WALKING BACK TO HAPPINESS (2002)

Commonness

All English words that begin with 'S'

Related Terms

8 results

View more related terms

Browse nearby words

Browse dictionary