hit below the belt

1. To say something that is often too personal, usually irrelevant, and always unfair: “To remind reformed alcoholics of their drinking problem is to hit below the belt.” The expression comes from boxing, in which it is illegal to hit an opponent below the belt.

Idioms and Phrases

Not behave according to the rules or decency, unfairly, as in Bringing up my mother's faults—that's really hitting below the belt . The term comes from boxing, where according to the Marquis of Queensberry Rules (1865) a fighter may punch his opponent only in the upper body or head. For a synonym, see low blow ; also see under one's belt .

Example Sentences

They ceded that ground to comedians, especially ones who hit below the belt and shrug off protests about their cruelty by decrying cancel culture and supposed “wokeness.”

From Salon

Asked in a 2021 interview with NPR if 209 Times had at times hit “below the belt,” Sanchez did not disagree but added: “There’s never been a time it wasn’t warranted.”

From Los Angeles Times

Instead, the president hit below the belt.

From Reuters

Guess you could say this sanction hit below the belt.

From Seattle Times

But he also was denigrated as a gut fighter who hit below the belt.

From Los Angeles Times