cheap shot

noun

1
: an act of deliberate roughness against a defenseless opponent especially in a contact sport
taking cheap shots at the quarterback
2
: a critical statement that takes unfair advantage of a known weakness of the target
cheap-shot transitive verb

Examples of cheap shot in a Sentence

He took a cheap shot at the quarterback. a cheap shot to the back of the head The remark about his weight was a cheap shot.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
This is instead of sliding the way Trevor Lawrence did on Sunday to prevent quarterbacks suffering concussions like the Jacksonville signal-caller did after taking a cheap shot from linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair of the Houston Texans. Josh Hammer, Newsweek, 2 Dec. 2024 But Oz was born to take every cheap shot presented by the cruelest of fates. Andy Andersen, Vulture, 3 Nov. 2024 Trump has never proven disciplined when tempted with the cheap shot and there is no reason to think that has changed. Philip Elliott, TIME, 10 Sep. 2024 After about 30 minutes, Trump moved back into his familiar stump-speech territory of preposterous boasts about his record and cheap shots at his rivals. Cynthia Littleton, Variety, 19 July 2024 See all Example Sentences for cheap shot 

Word History

First Known Use

1971, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of cheap shot was in 1971

Dictionary Entries Near cheap shot

Cite this Entry

“Cheap shot.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cheap%20shot. Accessed 16 Dec. 2024.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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