pinch hit

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noun Baseball.

a hit made by a pinch hitter.

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Origin of pinch hit

First recorded in 1910–15

Words nearby pinch hit

pinchbottle, pinchcock, pincheck, pinch effect, pincher, pinch hit, pinch hitter, Pinchot, pinch pennies, pinchpenny, pinch pleat

Other definitions for pinch hit (2 of 2)

pinch-hit

[ pinch-hit ]

/ ˈpɪntʃˈhɪt /

verb (used without object), pinch-hit, pinch-hit·ting.

Baseball. to serve as a pinch hitter.

Informal. to substitute for someone, especially in an emergency.

verb (used with object), pinch-hit, pinch-hit·ting.

Baseball. to get, or make (a hit) in pinch-hitting.

Origin of pinch-hit

1930–35, Americanism; back formation from pinch hitter

How to use pinch hit in a sentence

The most recent issue contains detailed instructions for building car bombs, and the magazine frequently draws up hit-lists.
U.S. Spies See Al Qaeda Fingerprints on Paris Massacre|Shane Harris, Nancy A. Youssef|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
The big slug happened to hit the suspect in the street, passing through his arm and then striking Police Officer Andrew Dossi.
Shot Down During the NYPD Slowdown|Michael Daly|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
I was friends with her drummer from Sleater-Kinney, and I met Carrie, and we just hit it off.
Coffee Talk with Fred Armisen: On ‘Portlandia,’ Meeting Obama, and Taylor Swift’s Greatness|Marlow Stern|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
We hit it off amazingly well, and started a real friendship.
The Story Behind Lee Marvin’s Liberty Valance Smile|Robert Ward|January 3, 2015|DAILY BEAST

They were the machine gun bullets coming from the ambush when my company got hit.
The Story Behind Lee Marvin’s Liberty Valance Smile|Robert Ward|January 3, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Many of us had been hit by the balls, but a bruise or a graze of the skin was the worst consequence that had ensued.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various
He shut his fist and hit Butterface a weak but well intended right-hander on the nose.
The Giant of the North|R.M. Ballantyne
One of the men seemed pretty bad, being hit in the head and in the body.
Gallipoli Diary, Volume I|Ian Hamilton
Here are pretty goings on—a pinch of your snuff, Perker, my boy—never were such times, eh?
The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club, v. 2(of 2)|Charles Dickens
He could hit upon no plan, and he couldn't muster confidence to turn in.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, No. CCCXXXIX. January, 1844. Vol. LV.|Various

British Dictionary definitions for pinch hit

pinch-hit

verb -hits, -hitting or -hit (intr)

baseball to bat as a substitute for the scheduled batter

US and Canadian informal to act as a substitute

cricket (of a batsman in a limited-overs match) to bat aggressively at the start of an innings in order to take advantage of fielding restrictions

Derived forms of pinch-hit

pinch hitter, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012