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hit below the belt

To say something that is often too personal, usually irrelevant, and always unfair: “To remind reformed alcoholics of their drinking problem is to hit below the belt.” The expression comes from boxing, in which it is illegal to hit an opponent below the belt.

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RELATED WORDS

bamboozle, beguile, bilk, burn, chisel, con, deceive, defraud, double-cross, dupe, finagle, fleece, flimflam, fudge, hoodwink, hose, mislead, rook, scam, screw

Nearby words

  1. histrionic personality disorder,
  2. histrionics,
  3. hit,
  4. hit a snag,
  5. hit batsman,
  6. hit between the eyes,
  7. hit bottom,
  8. hit it big,
  9. hit it off,
  10. hit list
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Idioms and Phrases with hit below the belt

hit below the belt

see below the belt.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.