strike English · revision 3985

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=inherited|attested=c. 1200|origins=ine-pro *streyg-}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /straɪk/^(Roach et al. 2011)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|striken]],^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024) [[inh|ang|strīcan|t=to pass lightly over, stroke, rub; to go, proceed]] (past tense strāc),^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) from [[gem-pro|*strīkaną|alt=*strikanan]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) the source also of Old Frisian strīka, Dutch strijken and German streichen “to stroke”,^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) from [[ine-pro|*streyg-|alt=*strig-|t=to stroke, rub, press]],^(Etymonline)^(Barnhart 1988) represented also by Latin striga “row” and stria “furrow”.^(Barnhart 1988)^(MWU 2024) It is related to [[stroke]] and [[streak]], and its development was perhaps influenced by Old Norse strjúka.^(Etymonline)^(Cresswell 2021) The noun is from the verb.^(Etymonline)^(MWU 2024)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ “To make one's way, go”: about 1200 in the OED.^(OED 1989) Old English strīcan meant “to go or flow” and “to rub lightly”, close to [[stroke]].^(Cresswell 2021)^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ The sense “to go, advance” survives in ''strike for'', “to head toward”.^(Etymonline) The transitive “to deal a blow” developed by the early 14th century,^(Etymonline) before 1325 in Barnhart.^(Barnhart 1988) “To collide, impinge on” and “to hit with a hammer” are from the mid-14th century,^(Etymonline) and “to cancel”, as with the stroke of a pen, from the late 14th century.^(Etymonline) “To reach an agreement” is from the mid-15th century,^(Etymonline) partly from Latin foedus ferire, “to strike a treaty”,^(Hoad 1986) and to stamp a coin by a stroke also by the mid-15th century.^(Etymonline) Of lightning it is from the late 14th century and of disease from the 1520s.^(Etymonline) ''To strike while the iron is hot'' is quoted by Chaucer in 1386.^(Cresswell 2021) “To lower a sail or flag” is Middle English, which led to “to stop work” in protest (mid-18th century);^(Cresswell 2021) the noun in this sense is from 1810.^(Etymonline)^(Cresswell 2021) In baseball a strike is from 1841,^(Etymonline) and ''three strikes and you're out'' is early 20th-century.^(Cresswell 2021) The bowling strike is by 1859.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * c. 1200 – to go.^(OED 1989)

+ * early 14th century – to deal a blow.^(Etymonline)

+ * late 14th century – to cancel; of lightning.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1386 – ''strike while the iron is hot''.^(Cresswell 2021)

+ * mid-15th century – to conclude an agreement.^(Etymonline)

+ * mid-18th century – to stop work.^(Cresswell 2021)

+ * 1810 – noun, a work stoppage.^(Etymonline)

+ * 1841 – in baseball.^(Etymonline)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Verb===

+ # To hit sharply, as with the hand or a weapon.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # To collide with or crash into.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # To attack suddenly.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # To stop work in protest against an employer.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # To make an impression on; to occur to: ''it struck me as odd''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # To produce a light by friction: ''strike a match''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # To find, as oil or gold.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # To reach an agreement: ''strike a deal''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # To remove or cancel: ''struck from the record''.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # Of a clock, to sound the hour.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ===Noun===

+ # A refusal to work by employees, to force an employer to meet demands.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # A sudden military attack, especially from the air.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # In baseball, a pitch counted against the batter.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # In bowling, the knocking down of all the pins with the first ball.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+ # A discovery of oil or ore.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[strikeless]]

+ * [[misstrike]]

+ * [[outstrike]]

+ * [[overstrike]]

+ * [[restrike]]

+ * [[striker]]

+ * [[grief-stricken]]

+ * [[panic-stricken]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[stroke]]

+ * [[streak]]

+ * [[strickle]]

+ * [[striking]]

+ * [[strigil]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}