Skip to main content
Glite Dictionary
to hit the target dead on

to hit the target dead on

3.9
To do something exactly right
  • idiom
translation icon : dar en el blanco
  • Your analysis hit the target dead on—it was exactly what we needed.

Examples

  • With her calculations, she hit the target dead on and impressed her colleagues.

  • The archer hit the target dead on during the championship round.

  • Wow, she hit the target dead on!

  • He hit the target dead on!

  • The archer hit the target dead on during the championship round.

  • With her calculations, she hit the target dead on and impressed her colleagues.

  • Your analysis hit the target dead on—it was exactly what we needed.

Synonyms

to hit the target
vsto hit the target dead on
10 3.5

To reach the thing you aim at or the goal you planned

is focused on exact correctness rather than mere success
to hit the bullseye
vsto hit the target dead on
1 5.1

Do exactly what you intend

is about perfect accuracy rather than general success

Antonyms

to mistake
37 1.0

To be wrong in what you think or do

to miss the mark
14 5.5

Fail to do what you meant to do

How Accurate

to hit the target dead on
3.9
bull's eye
  • Informal
1 4.2
to come close
51 2.8

Surface Forms

hit the target dead on infinitive
hit the target dead on past
hit the target dead on past participle
hitting the target dead on present participle
hits the target dead on third person singular

Morphology

hit + the + target + dead + on

The components 'hit' and 'target' are literal and point to aiming, but the phrase relies on the idiomatic intensifier 'dead on' meaning 'exactly' or 'completely right'. A B1 learner who knows the basic senses of the words might guess the general idea, but the specific use of 'dead' as an intensifier with 'on' is somewhat idiomatic rather than fully predictable, so it is only partly transparent.

Etymology

The phrase hit the target dead on comes from the image of an archer who hits the target exactly in the center, and the arrow lands 'dead on' the mark. That's why it now means 'to be exactly right' or 'to achieve perfect accuracy'.