# struck

/ˈstɹək/ (US) · /stɹˈʌk/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/struck
Updated: 2026-06-19

## Senses

### 1. to hit

verb · CEFR B1

hit something or someone with force.

For teachers: past tense of strike, meaning to deliver a physical blow or to come into forceful contact with a surface.

- The ship struck a large rock hidden just below the water.
- The vehicle struck the barrier at high speed, but the safety features prevented any serious injury to the driver.

### 2. to give an impression

verb · CEFR B2

to make you think or feel something about a person or situation.

For teachers: to produce a specific mental impression or to occur to someone's mind.

- It struck me as strange that he didn't say hello to us.
- The candidate's refusal to answer direct questions struck the interview panel as a sign of professional insecurity.

### 3. to happen suddenly

verb · CEFR B2

to happen or attack suddenly, like a disaster or a disease.

For teachers: to affect someone or something suddenly and usually unpleasantly.

- Tragedy struck the small town when the factory closed down.
- Disaster struck the expedition just miles from the summit when a sudden blizzard forced an immediate retreat.

### 4. to remove or delete

verb · CEFR C1 · Formal

to take something off a list or a record.

For teachers: to delete or cancel something from a formal record or document; often used with 'from'.

- The judge ordered that the witness's last comment be struck from the record.
- The controversial clause was struck from the final contract after hours of intense negotiation between the legal teams.

### 5. affected by

adjective · CEFR B2 · Literary

strongly affected by a feeling or a situation.

For teachers: functioning as a participial adjective meaning strongly affected or overcome by a particular emotion or condition.

- She stood there, struck dumb by the beauty of the mountains.
- Struck by a sudden wave of nostalgia, he spent the afternoon wandering through the streets of his childhood neighbourhood.

## Examples

- It suddenly struck me that I had forgotten my keys.
- The similarity between the two cases struck the detective as more than just a coincidence.
- The contrast between the modern glass skyscrapers and the crumbling stone ruins struck the visitors as a poignant reminder of the city's layered history.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.