hit between the eyes

Idioms

Make someone suddenly aware of something, have a sudden impact on. For example, News of their divorce hit me right between the eyes. [Colloquial; early 1900s]

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.

Chiefs coaches have devised drills to work on them so that his receivers won’t get hit between the eyes by a ball they don’t see coming.

From Washington Post • Feb. 4, 2021

“I dove in, spoke to some smart people. But then, I was hit between the eyes that there wasn’t a lot that I was going to be able to do.”

From New York Times • Jul. 28, 2017

Now, we are hit between the eyes with the outrageous fact that the burden has not been shared.

From Time Magazine Archive

Just when you thought he was vulnerable to the point of collapse, he shot forward again, and you were hit between the eyes.

From Time Magazine Archive

Sheen found himself against the ropes, blinking from a heavy hit between the eyes.

From The White Feather by Wodehouse, P. G. (Pelham Grenville)

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023