below the belt


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Related to below the belt: hit below the belt

belt

(bĕlt)
n.
1.
a. A flexible band, as of leather or cloth, worn around the waist or over a shoulder to hold up clothing, secure tools or weapons, or serve as decoration.
b. Something resembling a belt, as a number of machine-gun rounds attached together in a strip.
2. An encircling route.
3. A seat belt or safety belt.
4. A continuous band or chain for transferring motion or power or conveying materials from one wheel or shaft to another.
5. A band of tough reinforcing material beneath the tread of a tire.
6. A usually bandlike geographic region that is distinctive in a specific respect. Often used in combination: "This is America's rural poverty belt" (Charles Kuralt).
7. A powerful blow; a wallop.
8. A drink of hard liquor.
tr.v. belt·ed, belt·ing, belts
1. To equip, hold up, or attach with a belt: belted my trousers; belted the sword to her waist.
2. To encircle or mark in the manner of a belt: The equator belts the earth.
3. To beat with a belt or strap.
4. To strike forcefully; hit.
5. To sing in a loud and forceful manner: belt out a song.
6. To swig (an alcoholic beverage).
Idioms:
below the belt
Not according to the rules; unfairly.
tighten (one's) belt
To begin to exercise thrift and frugality.
under (one's) belt
In one's possession or experience: "By his mid-teens, Liszt had three years of intensive concertizing under his belt" (Musical Heritage Review).
[Middle English, from Old English, from Germanic *baltijaz, from Latin balteus, belt, baldric, possibly of Etruscan origin.]

below the belt

Foul punch below the waistline, especially in the groin area.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Adj.1.below the belt - disregarding the rules (from the notion of an illegal low blow in boxing); "her accusations were below the belt"
boxing, pugilism, fisticuffs - fighting with the fists
unfair, unjust - not fair; marked by injustice or partiality or deception; "used unfair methods"; "it was an unfair trial"; "took an unfair advantage"
Adv.1.below the belt - in an unfair mannerbelow the belt - in an unfair manner; "they dealt with him unfairly"; "their accusations hit below the belt"
unfairly
Translations
Mentioned in ?
References in classic literature ?
One afternoon, after twenty minutes of desperate efforts to annihilate each other according to set rules that did not permit kicking, striking below the belt, nor hitting when one was down, Cheese-Face, panting for breath and reeling, offered to call it quits.
View in context
Put yourself in my place; feel as mean as I did, as ashamed as I felt -- wouldn't YOU have struck below the belt to get even?
View in context
I was hit by a hard shot below the belt. "I couldn't continue as the pain was too much." When an accidental injury ends a bout in which four rounds have been contested, the judges' cards are used, but the announcement of a technical knockout meant Khan was stopped.
Amir Khan beaten by Terence Crawford after low blow
"I couldn't continue, I'm not one of those fighters who quits but I was hit with a hard shot below the belt.
Amir Khan confirms why he quit Terence Crawford world title fight; Khan was hit with a low blow in the sixth round and he decided he was unable to continue
Gabby and Dan Osborne watched from the bedroom, with Dan joking to Jermaine that his "below the belt" gesture was below his knees rather than anything else.
Celebrity Big Brother housemates sneak CONDOMS to pair as they share a bed; Jermaine and Chloe seem to be getting closer - and the housemates want to see it all happen
"If you are winning that from the referee then fine, but then he goes down in the box and the referee obviously books him for a dive, so there's a lot of things that were below the belt in the game but that's what we're up against.
'below the belt; Robins rails at 'diving antics' and opposition manager after loss to Stags
But to expect the councils to fund it all, and at a time when government cuts to council budgets are hitting us all hard, is a bit below the belt.
Spend HS2 cash on other priorities; Letters
Unlike the traditional belt holster, the Swan allows a full size semi-auto to lie close to the body, below the belt and onto the hip.
Swan Holster
Two of his three career defeats have come via disqualification, one for delivering a knockout blow after the bell and the other for punching below the belt.
Selby sees Frampton on horizon after Hunter
Two of his three defeats have come via disqualification, one for delivering a knockout blow after the bell and the other for punching below the belt.
Selby has Frampton in his sights
The model features a red paint job accented by a thin yellow stripe below the belt line and 19-inch alloy wheels fitted with Pirelli P-Zero tyres and an interior with a special steering wheel, yellow contrast stitching on the seats and on the centre console, and H&R Street Performance coilovers.
Volkswagen plans to launch Jetta GLI MOMO edition at SEMA Show
The subject matter may be below the belt, but there was some nice dialogue.
? DREADFUL title, but a pretty [...]

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