Meaning & use
headbutt someone
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Meanings
verbtransitive
To hit someone hard with the top of your head, usually on purpose.
Grammar: Takes a direct object: headbutt someone. The past tense is headbutted.
Patterns
- headbutt someone
- headbutt someone in the face
- headbutt someone on the nose
The player was sent off after he headbutted an opponent.
In the fight, one man headbutted the other in the face.
nouncountable
A hit given with the top of the head.
Grammar: Usually singular in the phrase 'a headbutt': He gave him a headbutt.
Patterns
- give someone a headbutt
- a headbutt to the face
The referee missed the headbutt, but the cameras caught it.
He received a headbutt during the match and had to leave the field.
Word forms
| third person singular | headbutts |
|---|---|
| past tense | headbutted |
| past participle | headbutted |
| -ing form | headbutting |
Common combinations
- headbutt someone in the face
- He headbutted the guard in the face and ran.
- give someone a headbutt
- The drunk man gave the bouncer a headbutt.
- be sent off for a headbutt
- The defender was sent off for a headbutt on the striker.
Synonyms and how they differ
- butt
- A shorter verb meaning the same, often used for animals: The goat butted him.
- head-butt
- A variant spelling with a hyphen; both forms are accepted.
Word family
- headbutt noun
- The act of hitting with the head.
Commonly confused: headbutt someone or head-butt?
headbutt someone vs head-butt
Same meaning, but often written with a hyphen in British English.
Practice
Choose the correct sentence.
Choose one answer.
The past tense of 'headbutt' is 'headbutted', so option 0 is correct. Option 1 uses the base form without tense, option 2 adds 'was' incorrectly, and option 3 uses present tense with 'yesterday'.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “headbutt someone”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.