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ENGLISH · A WORD WITH POSSIBILITIES

kick.

To strike or hit with the foot or other extremity of the leg.

4 characters1 syllables approx.English language

Meaning & usage

verb/kɪk/[kʰɪk]
  1. To strike or hit with the foot or other extremity of the leg.

    transitive
    Did you kick your brother?
  2. To make a sharp jerking movement of the leg, as to strike something.

    intransitive
    He enjoyed the simple pleasure of watching the kickline kick.
  3. To direct to a particular place by a blow with the foot or leg.

    transitive
    Kick the ball into the goal.
  4. To eject summarily.

  5. To forcibly remove a participant from an online activity.

    Internet · transitive
    She was kicked from the IRC server for flooding.
  6. To overcome (a bothersome or difficult issue or obstacle); to free oneself of (a problem).

    slang · transitive
    I still smoke, but they keep telling me to kick the habit.
  7. To move or push suddenly and violently.

    He was kicked sideways by the force of the blast.
  8. To recoil; to push by recoiling.

  9. To attack (a piece) in order to force it to move.

    transitive
  10. To accelerate quickly with a few pedal strokes in an effort to break away from other riders.

    intransitive
    Contador kicks again to try to rid himself of Rasmussen.
  11. To show opposition or resistance.

    intransitive
  12. Of an engine, to engage; to start.

  13. To work a press by impact of the foot on a treadle.

    historical
  14. To reset (a watchdog timer).

    transitive
  15. To reproach oneself for making a mistake or missing an opportunity.

    informal · reflexive
    He's still kicking himself for not investing three years ago.
Where this word comes from

From Middle English kyken (“to strike out with the foot”), from Old Norse kikna (“to sink at the knees”) and keikja (“to bend backwards”) (compare Old Norse keikr (“bent backwards, the belly jutting forward”)), from Proto-Germanic *kaikaz (“bent backwards”), of uncertain origin. Perhaps from Proto-Germanic *kī-, *kij- (“to split, dodge, swerve sidewards”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵeyH- (“to sprout, shoot”). Compare also Dutch kijken (“to look”), Middle Low German kīken (“to look, watch”). See keek.

noun/kɪk/[kʰɪk]
  1. A hit or strike with the leg, foot or knee.

    countable · uncountable
    A kick to the knee.
  2. The action of swinging a foot or leg.

    countable · uncountable
    The ballerina did a high kick and a leap.
  3. The action of swinging a foot or leg. A kicking motion used in a swim stroke.

    countable · uncountable
  4. Something that tickles the fancy; something fun or amusing; a pleasure; a thrill.

    colloquial · countable · uncountable
    I finally saw the show. What a kick!
    I think I sprained something on my latest exercise kick.
  5. The removal of a person from an online activity.

    Internet · countable · uncountable
  6. The act of restarting or resetting a watchdog timer.

    countable · uncountable
  7. Any bucking motion of an object that lacks legs or feet.

    countable · figuratively · uncountable
    The car had a nasty kick the whole way.
    The pool ball took a wild kick, up off the table.
  8. A pungent or spicy flavour; piquancy.

    countable · uncountable
  9. A stimulation provided by an intoxicating substance.

    countable · uncountable
  10. A pass played by kicking with the foot.

    countable · uncountable
  11. The distance traveled by kicking the ball.

    countable · uncountable
    a long kick up the field.
  12. The recoil of a gun.

    countable · uncountable
  13. A pocket.

    countable · informal · uncountable
  14. An increase in speed in the final part of a running race.

    countable · uncountable
  15. Synonym of kicker (“backlight positioned at an angle”).

    countable · uncountable
  16. Sixpence.

    UK · colloquial · countable · dated · historical · uncountable
  17. A shoe.

    colloquial · countable · uncountable
  18. Clipping of kickdrum; a 808.

    abbreviation · alt-of · clipping · countable · uncountable
Where this word comes from

From Middle English kyken (“to strike out with the foot”), from Old Norse kikna (“to sink at the knees”) and keikja (“to bend backwards”) (compare Old Norse keikr (“bent backwards, the belly jutting forward”)), from Proto-Germanic *kaikaz (“bent backwards”), of uncertain origin. Perhaps from Proto-Germanic *kī-, *kij- (“to split, dodge, swerve sidewards”), from Proto-Indo-European *ǵeyH- (“to sprout, shoot”). Compare also Dutch kijken (“to look”), Middle Low German kīken (“to look, watch”). See keek.

verb/kɪk/[kʰɪk]
  1. To die.

    intransitive
Where this word comes from

Shortening of kick the bucket.

verb/kɪk/[kʰɪk]
  1. To be emphatically excellent.

    intransitive · slang
    That band really kicks.
Where this word comes from

Shortening of kick ass

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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.

Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.