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
In a subsequent court filing , Woods’ legal team struck back at Tigeraire, accusing the company of trying to capitalize off Sun Day Red’s status.
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Alex Sherman, CNBC, 10 Oct. 2024
Nearly 200 Iranian missiles targeted Israeli sites, including the Mossad headquarters, the nuclear reactor in Dimona, and strategic air bases, leaving Israel no choice but to strike back.
—Ari Shavit, Foreign Affairs, 5 Oct. 2024
The result, however, was a stake through the heart of global trade: European countries struck back with their own tariffs.
—Kelly Phillips Erb, Forbes, 12 Oct. 2024
But Cleveland struck back the next inning with David Fry's two-run home run off Beau Brieske.
—Joe Guillen, Axios, 11 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for strike back 
Alex Sherman, CNBC, 10 Oct. 2024
Nearly 200 Iranian missiles targeted Israeli sites, including the Mossad headquarters, the nuclear reactor in Dimona, and strategic air bases, leaving Israel no choice but to strike back.
—Ari Shavit, Foreign Affairs, 5 Oct. 2024
The result, however, was a stake through the heart of global trade: European countries struck back with their own tariffs.
—Kelly Phillips Erb, Forbes, 12 Oct. 2024
But Cleveland struck back the next inning with David Fry's two-run home run off Beau Brieske.
—Joe Guillen, Axios, 11 Oct. 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 4 Nov. 2024.
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