upside the head

1. Against the side of someone's head, as in With those nightsticks the police are known for knocking suspects upside the head. [Slang; second half of 1900s]

Example Sentences

How do you square this with him fully signing off on a Gorsuch opinion smacking trial court judges upside the head?

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Naturally, this new, made-up job title pushes someone else out of Oliver’s circle — an apt shape, given that what goes around eventually comes back around to smack Matthew upside the head when the same thing happens to him.

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“People aren’t being hit upside the head with the size of the problem, because they throw out a quarter sandwich here and a couple eggs there, not everything in their fridge. Maybe if groceries keep getting more expensive, they’ll finally make the connection.”

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Somebody else to lean on, to carry the load and to hit me upside the head when I need to be hit upside the head.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

The business of the NBA had just smacked him directly upside the head, a team showing little hesitation to send him out the door only to be forced into welcoming him back because of a failed physical by Williams.

Read more on Los Angeles Times