a block of clay hardened by drying in the sun or burning in a kiln, and used for building, paving, etc.: traditionally, in the U.S., a rectangle 21/4 × 33/4 × 8 in. (5.7 × 9.5 × 20.3 cm), red, brown, or yellow in color.
2.
such blocks collectively.
3.
the material of which such blocks are made.
4.
any block or bar having a similar size and shape: a gold brick; an ice-cream brick.
5.
the length of a brick as a measure of thickness, as of a wall: one and a half bricks thick.
6.
Informal. an admirably good or generous person.
–verb (used with object)
7.
to pave, line, wall, fill, or build with brick.
–adjective
8.
made of, constructed with, or resembling bricks.
—Idioms
9.
drop a brick, to make a social gaffe or blunder, esp. an indiscreet remark.
10.
hit the bricks,
a.
to walk the streets, esp. as an unemployed or homeless person.
b.
to go on strike: With contract talks stalled, workers are threatening to hit the bricks.
Also, take to the bricks.
11.
make bricks without straw,
a.
to plan or act on a false premise or unrealistic basis.
b.
to create something that will not last: To form governments without the consent of the people is to make bricks without straw.
c.
to perform a task despite the lack of necessary materials.
Origin: 1400–50; late ME brike < MD bricke; akin to break
To come into contact with forcefully; strike: The car hit the guardrail.
To reach with or as if with a blow: The bullet hit the police officer in the shoulder.
To cause to come into contact: She hit her hand against the wall.
To deal a blow to.
To strike with a missile: fired and hit the target.
To reach with a propelled ball or puck: hit the running back with a pass.
To score in this way: She hit the winning basket.
To perform (a shot or maneuver) successfully: couldn't hit the jump shot.
To propel with a stroke or blow: hit the ball onto the green.
To execute (a base hit) successfully: hit a single.
To bat against (a pitcher or kind of pitch) successfully: can't hit a slider.
To affect, especially adversely: The company was hit hard by the recession. Influenza hit the elderly the hardest.
To be affected by (a negative development): Their marriage hit a bad patch.
To win (a prize, for example), especially in a lottery.
To arise suddenly in the mind of; occur to: It finally hit him that she might be his long-lost sister.
Informal To go to or arrive at: We hit the beach early.
Informal To attain or reach: Monthly sales hit a new high. She hit 40 on her last birthday.
To produce or represent accurately: trying to hit the right note.
To cause to come into contact: She hit her hand against the wall.
To deal a blow to.
To strike with a missile: fired and hit the target.
To reach with a propelled ball or puck: hit the running back with a pass.
To score in this way: She hit the winning basket.
To perform (a shot or maneuver) successfully: couldn't hit the jump shot.
To propel with a stroke or blow: hit the ball onto the green.
To execute (a base hit) successfully: hit a single.
To bat against (a pitcher or kind of pitch) successfully: can't hit a slider.
To affect, especially adversely: The company was hit hard by the recession. Influenza hit the elderly the hardest.
To be affected by (a negative development): Their marriage hit a bad patch.
To win (a prize, for example), especially in a lottery.
To arise suddenly in the mind of; occur to: It finally hit him that she might be his long-lost sister.
Informal To go to or arrive at: We hit the beach early.
Informal To attain or reach: Monthly sales hit a new high. She hit 40 on her last birthday.
To produce or represent accurately: trying to hit the right note.
To press or push (a key or button, for example): hit the return key by mistake.
Sports
To reach with a propelled ball or puck: hit the running back with a pass.
To score in this way: She hit the winning basket.
To perform (a shot or maneuver) successfully: couldn't hit the jump shot.
To propel with a stroke or blow: hit the ball onto the green.
To execute (a base hit) successfully: hit a single.
To bat against (a pitcher or kind of pitch) successfully: can't hit a slider.
To affect, especially adversely: The company was hit hard by the recession. Influenza hit the elderly the hardest.
To be affected by (a negative development): Their marriage hit a bad patch.
To win (a prize, for example), especially in a lottery.
To arise suddenly in the mind of; occur to: It finally hit him that she might be his long-lost sister.
Informal To go to or arrive at: We hit the beach early.
Informal To attain or reach: Monthly sales hit a new high. She hit 40 on her last birthday.
To produce or represent accurately: trying to hit the right note.
Baseball
To execute (a base hit) successfully: hit a single.
To bat against (a pitcher or kind of pitch) successfully: can't hit a slider.
To affect, especially adversely: The company was hit hard by the recession. Influenza hit the elderly the hardest.
To be affected by (a negative development): Their marriage hit a bad patch.
To win (a prize, for example), especially in a lottery.
To arise suddenly in the mind of; occur to: It finally hit him that she might be his long-lost sister.
Informal To go to or arrive at: We hit the beach early.
Informal To attain or reach: Monthly sales hit a new high. She hit 40 on her last birthday.
To produce or represent accurately: trying to hit the right note.
To affect, especially adversely: The company was hit hard by the recession. Influenza hit the elderly the hardest.
To be affected by (a negative development): Their marriage hit a bad patch.
To win (a prize, for example), especially in a lottery.
To arise suddenly in the mind of; occur to: It finally hit him that she might be his long-lost sister.
Informal To go to or arrive at: We hit the beach early.
Informal To attain or reach: Monthly sales hit a new high. She hit 40 on her last birthday.
To produce or represent accurately: trying to hit the right note.
Informal
To win (a prize, for example), especially in a lottery.
To arise suddenly in the mind of; occur to: It finally hit him that she might be his long-lost sister.
Informal To go to or arrive at: We hit the beach early.
Informal To attain or reach: Monthly sales hit a new high. She hit 40 on her last birthday.
To produce or represent accurately: trying to hit the right note.
Informal To go to or arrive at: We hit the beach early.
Informal To attain or reach: Monthly sales hit a new high. She hit 40 on her last birthday.
To produce or represent accurately: trying to hit the right note.
Games To deal cards to.
Sports To bite on or take (bait or a lure). Used of a fish.
v.
intr.
To strike or deal a blow.
To come into contact with something; collide.
To attack: The raiders hit at dawn.
To happen or occur: The storm hit without warning.
To achieve or find something desired or sought: finally hit on the answer; hit upon a solution to the problem.
Baseball To bat or bat well: Their slugger hasn't been hitting lately.
Sports To score by shooting, especially in basketball: hit on 7 of 8 shots.
To ignite a mixture of air and fuel in the cylinders. Used of an internal-combustion engine.
n.
A collision or impact.
A successfully executed shot, blow, thrust, or throw.
Sports A deliberate collision with an opponent, such as a body check in ice hockey.
A match of data in a search string against data that one is searching.
A connection made to a website over the Internet or another network: Our company's website gets about 2,000 hits daily.
A dose of a narcotic drug.
A puff of a cigarette or a pipe.
A successful or popular venture: a Broadway hit.
Computer Science
A match of data in a search string against data that one is searching.
A connection made to a website over the Internet or another network: Our company's website gets about 2,000 hits daily.
A dose of a narcotic drug.
A puff of a cigarette or a pipe.
An apt or effective remark.
Abbr. HBaseball A base hit.
Slang
A dose of a narcotic drug.
A puff of a cigarette or a pipe.
Slang A murder planned and carried out usually by a member of an underworld syndicate.
Phrasal Verb(s): hit on Slang To pay unsolicited and usually unwanted sexual attention to: can't go into a bar lately without being hit on. hit up Slang To approach and ask (someone) for something, especially for money: tried to hit me up for a loan.
Idiom(s):
hit it big Slang To be successful: investors who hit it big on the stock market.
Idiom(s):
hit it off Informal To get along well together.
Idiom(s):
hit the books Informal To study, especially with concentrated effort.
Idiom(s):
hit the bottle/booze/sauce Slang To engage in drinking alcoholic beverages.
Idiom(s):
hit the bricks Slang To go on strike.
Idiom(s):
hit the fan Slang To have serious, usually adverse consequences.
Idiom(s):
hit the ground running Informal To begin a venture with great energy, involvement, and competence.
Idiom(s):
hit the hay/sack Slang To go to bed: hit the hay well before midnight.
Idiom(s):
hit the high points/spotsTo direct attention to the most important points or places.
Idiom(s):
hit the jackpotTo become highly and unexpectedly successful, especially to win a great deal of money.
Idiom(s):
hit the nail on the headTo be absolutely right.
Idiom(s):
hit the road Slang To set out, as on a trip; leave.
Idiom(s):
hit the roof/ceiling Slang To express anger, especially vehemently.
Idiom(s):
hit the spotTo give total or desired satisfaction, as food or drink.
[Middle English hitten, from Old English hyttan, from Old Norse hitta.] hit'less adj., hit'ta·ble adj.
n. a failed shot (in basketball) that bounces off the rim or backboard. : Chalk up another brick for Michael.
n. any failure. : This whole thing is a mess. Whose brick is this anyway?
in. to fail. (From sense 1.) : The whole project bricked because we sat on the contract too long.
tv. to strike or punch someone. (Streets.) : That dude just bricked a cop!
n. a block of marijuana; a kilo of cocaine. (Drugs.) : Man, I can't afford a brick! Gimme a bag. , The police said he was carrying a “brick” of cannabis when arrested.
n. a large, brick-shaped, handheld mobile telephone that is a precursor to the modern cellphone. : I still have my old “brick,” but I'd be embarrassed to use it, even if it did still work.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition. Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source
hit the bricks
and hit the pavement
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition. Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
Cite This Source
Word Origin & History
brick
1416, from O.Fr. briche, probably from a Gmc. source akin to M.Du. bricke "a tile," lit. "a broken piece," from the verbal root of break. Meaning "a good fellow" is from 1840. Brickbat "piece or fragment of a brick" is from 1563; brick wall in the fig. sense of "impenetrable barrier" is from 1886.
[brik] 
