cheap shot

American  

noun

1. a covert, unsportsmanlike, and illegal act of deliberate roughness, especially in football, often calculated to injure an opponent.

2. any mean or unsportsmanlike remark or action, especially one directed at a defenseless or vulnerable person.

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cheap shot Idioms  

1. An unfair or unsporting verbal attack, as in You called him an amateur? That's really taking a cheap shot. The term originated in sports, especially American football, where it signifies deliberate roughness against an unprepared opponent. [Slang; second half of 1900s]

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Example Sentences

But in doing so, "they would have made this tenuous link between fluoride and Aimee Lou's teeth. It's a bit of a cheap shot," she told BBC Breakfast on Tuesday.

From BBC • Apr. 16, 2025

Indeed, one might ask whether everyone who is presuming that Smith did not follow department procedure is taking their own cheap shot.

From Slate • Oct. 7, 2024

So here’s the question: Is it fair criticism, or a cheap shot?

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 6, 2024

With that star power comes an easy cheap shot: Why should anybody care about a bunch of privileged elites whining about a dream job?

From New York Times • Jul. 16, 2023

“Natalie doesn’t like it either. She doesn’t like it one bit,” I say, although I know this is a cheap shot.

From "Al Capone Does My Shirts" by Gennifer Choldenko

Related Words

• abuse
• affront
• blasphemy
• contempt
• disgrace
• disrespect
• indignity
• invective
• libel
• outrage
• put-down
• scorn
• shame
• slander
• slap
• slight
• snub
• taunt