Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Strike \Strike\, v. t. [imp. {Struck}; p. p. {Struck},
   {Stricken}({Stroock}, {Strucken}, Obs.); p. pr. & vb. n.
   {Striking}. Struck is more commonly used in the p. p. than
   stricken.] [OE. striken to strike, proceed, flow, AS.
   str[=i]can to go, proceed, akin to D. strijken to rub,
   stroke, strike, to move, go, G. streichen, OHG. str[=i]hhan,
   L. stringere to touch lightly, to graze, to strip off (but
   perhaps not to L. stringere in sense to draw tight), striga a
   row, a furrow. Cf. {Streak}, {Stroke}.]
   1. To touch or hit with some force, either with the hand or
      with an instrument; to smite; to give a blow to, either
      with the hand or with any instrument or missile.

            He at Philippi kept His sword e'en like a dancer;
            while I struck The lean and wrinkled Cassius.
                                                  --Shak.

   2. To come in collision with; to strike against; as, a bullet
      struck him; the wave struck the boat amidships; the ship
      struck a reef.

   3. To give, as a blow; to impel, as with a blow; to give a
      force to; to dash; to cast.

            They shall take of the blood, and strike it on the
            two sideposts.                        --Ex. xii. 7.

            Who would be free, themselves must strike the blow.
                                                  --Byron.

   4. To stamp or impress with a stroke; to coin; as, to strike
      coin from metal: to strike dollars at the mint.

   5. To thrust in; to cause to enter or penetrate; to set in
      the earth; as, a tree strikes its roots deep.

   6. To punish; to afflict; to smite.

            To punish the just is not good, nor strike princes
            for equity.                           --Prov. xvii.
                                                  26.

   7. To cause to sound by one or more beats; to indicate or
      notify by audible strokes; as, the clock strikes twelve;
      the drums strike up a march.

   8. To lower; to let or take down; to remove; as, to strike
      sail; to strike a flag or an ensign, as in token of
      surrender; to strike a yard or a topmast in a gale; to
      strike a tent; to strike the centering of an arch.

   9. To make a sudden impression upon, as by a blow; to affect
      sensibly with some strong emotion; as, to strike the mind,
      with surprise; to strike one with wonder, alarm, dread, or
      horror.

            Nice works of art strike and surprise us most on the
            first view.                           --Atterbury.

            They please as beauties, here as wonders strike.
                                                  --Pope.

   10. To affect in some particular manner by a sudden
       impression or impulse; as, the plan proposed strikes me
       favorably; to strike one dead or blind.

             How often has stricken you dumb with his irony!
                                                  --Landor.

   11. To cause or produce by a stroke, or suddenly, as by a
       stroke; as, to strike a light.

             Waving wide her myrtle wand, She strikes a
             universal peace through sea and land. --Milton.

   12. To cause to ignite; as, to strike a match.

   13. To make and ratify; as, to strike a bargain.

   Note: Probably borrowed from the L. f[oe]dus ferrire, to
         strike a compact, so called because an animal was
         struck and killed as a sacrifice on such occasions.

   14. To take forcibly or fraudulently; as, to strike money.
       [Old Slang]

   15. To level, as a measure of grain, salt, or the like, by
       scraping off with a straight instrument what is above the
       level of the top.

   16. (Masonry) To cut off, as a mortar joint, even with the
       face of the wall, or inward at a slight angle.

   17. To hit upon, or light upon, suddenly; as, my eye struck a
       strange word; they soon struck the trail.

   18. To borrow money of; to make a demand upon; as, he struck
       a friend for five dollars. [Slang]

   19. To lade into a cooler, as a liquor. --B. Edwards.

   20. To stroke or pass lightly; to wave.

             Behold, I thought, He will . . . strike his hand
             over the place, and recover the leper. --2 Kings v.
                                                  11.

   21. To advance; to cause to go forward; -- used only in past
       participle. ``Well struck in years.'' --Shak.

   {To strike an attitude}, {To strike a balance}. See under
      {Attitude}, and {Balance}.

   {To strike a jury} (Law), to constitute a special jury
      ordered by a court, by each party striking out a certain
      number of names from a prepared list of jurors, so as to
      reduce it to the number of persons required by law.
      --Burrill.

   {To strike a lead}.
       (a) (Mining) To find a vein of ore.
       (b) Fig.: To find a way to fortune. [Colloq.]

   {To strike} {a ledger, or an account}, to balance it.

   {To strike hands with}.
       (a) To shake hands with. --Halliwell.
       (b) To make a compact or agreement with; to agree with.
           

   {To strike off}.
       (a) To erase from an account; to deduct; as, to strike
           off the interest of a debt.
       (b) (Print.) To impress; to print; as, to strike off a
           thousand copies of a book.

Striking \Strik"ing\,
   a. & n. from {Strike}, v.

   {Striking distance}, the distance through which an object can
      be reached by striking; the distance at which a force is
      effective when directed to a particular object.

Striking \Strik"ing\, a.
   Affecting with strong emotions; surprising; forcible;
   impressive; very noticeable; as, a striking representation or
   image; a striking resemblance. ``A striking fact.'' --De
   Quincey. -- {Strik"ing*ly}, adv. -- {Strik"ing*ness}, n.

Source : WordNet®

striking
     n 1: the physical coming together of two or more things; "contact
          with the pier scraped paint from the hull" [syn: {contact},
           {impinging}]
     2: the act of contacting one thing with another; "repeated
        hitting raised a large bruise"; "after three misses she
        finally got a hit" [syn: {hit}, {hitting}]

striking
     adj 1: sensational in appearance or thrilling in effect; "a
            dramatic sunset"; "a dramatic pause"; "a spectacular
            display of northern lights"; "it was a spectacular
            play"; "his striking good looks always created a
            sensation" [syn: {dramatic}, {spectacular}]
     2: having a quality that thrusts itself into attention; "an
        outstanding fact of our time is that nations poisoned by
        anti semitism proved less fortunate in regard to their own
        freedom"; "a new theory is the most prominent feature of
        the book"; "salient traits"; "a spectacular rise in
        prices"; "a striking thing about Picadilly Circus is the
        statue of Eros in the center"; "a striking resemblance
        between parent and child" [syn: {outstanding}, {prominent},
         {salient}, {spectacular}]