hit back

phrasal verb

hit back; hitting back; hits back

informal

: to attack or criticize someone after being attacked or criticized by them

Weary of her rival's accusations, the candidate hit back with an aggressive ad campaign.

The team hit back with a touchdown of their own.

—often + at

The Senator hit back at his critics.

Examples of hit back in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

While fielding questions from reporters on the Middle East before his abrupt departure from an international summit, Trump hit back at Carlson over criticisms of his approach to the war. —Francesca Chambers, USA Today, 18 June 2025

Iran hit back, launching a counterattack that has led to five consecutive days of warfare. —Ashleigh Fields, The Hill, 17 June 2025

But McMahon hit back during another representative’s questioning. —Morgan Kromer, The Washington Examiner, 5 June 2025

But the escalating feud won’t be enough to salvage a Starlink contract with Canada’s Ontario province, which canceled the deal to hit back at Trump’s trade war. —Michael Kan, PC Magazine, 5 June 2025

Rhymes for hit back

• aback
• anzac
• attack
• backpack
• backtrack
• bareback
• blackjack
• brownback
• buyback
• callback
• cognac
• comeback