blindside
Americanverb (used with object)
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Sports. to tackle, hit, or attack (an opponent) from the blind side.
The quarterback was blindsided and had the ball knocked out of his hand.
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to attack critically where a person is vulnerable, uninformed, etc..
The president was blindsided by the press on the latest tax bill.
Etymology
Origin of blindside
First recorded in 1970–75; verb use of noun phrase blind side
Explanation
To blindside is to launch a surprise attack, especially one that comes from an obstructed or hidden place. Your video game army might blindside your friend's army, resulting in your victory. If you come up from behind your brother and shove him, you can say that you blindside him. There is also a more figurative way to blindside someone — simply to do or say something the person is utterly unprepared for. You could blindside your family, for example, by suddenly announcing that you're moving to China. The oldest use of blindside as a verb, around 1968, referred to a football tackle.
Vocabulary lists containing blindside
Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life
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Lyrics from "Everybody's Free (To Wear Sunscreen)" by Baz Luhrmann
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Five Feet Apart
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Raffi Quirke, a boyhood Sale fan, signed off before a summer move to Newcastle with a blindside dart and cute chip to set up one of Arron Reed's two tries.
From BBC ● Jun. 8, 2026
He replaces Matt Fagerson at number eight, with Fagerson switching to blindside flanker.
From BBC ● Mar. 5, 2026
Pollock lines up at number eight as part of a reshaped back row that sees Ben Earl move to openside and Tom Curry come in at blindside.
From Barron's ● Feb. 17, 2026
Deaves will start at openside flanker alongside blindside Alex Mann and Aaron Wainwright at No.8.
From Barron's ● Nov. 20, 2025
All she wanted was to tell him how sorry she was that she hadn’t given him the full warning, that she’d let it blindside him like this.
From "Pet" by Akwaeke Emezi
Their view: that those AI skeptics could get blindsided this year.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 30, 2026
The people I spoke to are blindsided that this no longer appears to be the case and it will be down to individual platforms.
From BBC ● Jun. 15, 2026
It’s not unusual for players to be blindsided by abrupt roster moves, good or bad.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 13, 2026
The city’s real-estate leaders were blindsided by a proposed new tax that could hurt their business.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 16, 2026
Because it might turn out that the fellow across the aisle was the guy you’d nearly blindsided at the freeway exit yesterday in order to beat him to a promising garage sale.
From "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini
It’s more than fair to say that this dust-up isn’t a new development that is blindsiding investors.
From Barron's ● Nov. 10, 2025
“It’s been awful. It’s been blindsiding, it’s been a shock because I personally love the L.A. Times and I loved working for you guys and ... that’s gone.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 8, 2023
It did this without warning or consulting NPR, blindsiding its leadership.
From Salon ● Apr. 13, 2023
Reckitt recently raised prices on some formulas, blindsiding some parents already frustrated with the struggle to find certain brands.
From Washington Times ● Mar. 28, 2023
The Manly Warringah Sea Eagles admit they didn't consult players about the jersey, apologising also for blindsiding them.
From BBC ● Jul. 29, 2022
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
