heavy hitter

American  

noun

1. a baseball player who makes many extra-base hits.

2. a very important or influential person.

   the secretary of state and other heavy hitters.

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heavy hitter British  

noun

1. informal another term for big hitter

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heavy hitter Idioms  

1. An important or influential individual or organization. For example, This publishing house is one of the heavy hitters in the textbook industry. This expression originated in sports such as boxing, where it literally meant “hitting hard,” and was transferred to other enterprises in the mid-1900s.

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Other Word Forms

• heavy-hitter
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of heavy hitter

First recorded in 1975–80

Example Sentences

What's absolutely fascinating about this game is the options that Clarke has and the way he's talking about the utilisation of his bench, hinting that he might keep a heavy hitter in reserve.

From BBC • Jun. 13, 2026

Cornerstone is a heavy hitter in Washington; it took in $44 million in 2023 from nearly 300 clients.

From Seattle Times • Apr. 16, 2024

From a Latin music heavy hitter taking on serious acting to a famous Chilean heartthrob hanging out in Oakland, here are the 7 movies playing at Sundance that we are most excited about.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 1, 2024

Google’s strength in search makes it a heavy hitter in the lucrative advertising market, its biggest revenue source.

From Reuters • Oct. 30, 2023

A wonderful fielder, a sure and heavy hitter, and like a flash on the bases, he alone makes Homans' team formidable.

From The Young Pitcher by Grey, Zane