strike oil

English

Verb

strike oil (third-person singular simple present strikes oil, present participle striking oil, simple past struck oil, past participle struck oil or (rare) stricken oil)

1. To find petroleum when boring for it.
   • 2015, Mike Shepherd, Oil Strike North Sea: A first-hand history of North Sea oil, Luath Press Ltd, →ISBN:

     In today's oil patch you strike oil the modern way – the geologist examines the rock cuttings brought up in the drilling mud to see if there is any oil on them as John had done here.

2. (figurative, idiomatic, informal) To have sudden good fortune, especially financially.
   • 2002, R. Wayne Pace, Organizational Dynamism: Unleashing Power in the Workforce, Greenwood Publishing Group, →ISBN, page 4:

     J. Paul Getty's formula for success sorts this idea out: “Rise early, work hard, strike oil.” That's good advice, but most of us will not strike oil. In fact we may become irritated by the idea that something spectacular must occur for success to emerge.

See also

• strike gold