From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishkick in phrasal verb1 informalEFFECTIVE to start or to begin to have an effect The storm is expected to kick in shortly after sunrise. The painkillers kicked in and he became sleepy.2 kick in (something)GIVE to join with others in giving money or help SYN chip in Bill never wants to kick in. We were each asked to kick in 50 cents toward the cost.3 kick somebody’s head/face/teeth inINJURE to injure someone badly by kicking them He threatened to come round and kick my head in.4 kick a door in to kick a locked door so hard that it breaks open We had to get the police to kick the door in. → kick→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
kick in• Hence the special holiday offers about to kick in.• My adrenaline kicked in and the world got quieter.• That Rogaine better kick in before the millennium.kick in (something)• Hence the special holiday offers about to kick in.• Door kicked in and rented video stolen.• My adrenaline kicked in and the world got quieter.• That Rogaine better kick in before the millennium.• A stained glass window was recently kicked in - causing fifteen hundred pounds worth of damage.• On another occasion he kicked in the glass in a series of school doors.• I felt like I had been kicked in the stomach.• SunSoft will be kicking in with its ONC+.kick somebody’s head/face/teeth in• It goes with some people wanting to kick my head in.• Lou and Van burst into tears and Hamburglar kicks their heads in.• So they are all there, kicking our teeth in.• But they would kick your head in if you spilt their pint just the same.From Longman Business Dictionarykick in phrasal verb1[intransitive] informal if a system, arrangement, event etc kicks in, it begins to have an effectMany lawyers are hurrying to arrange settlements before the new tax rules kick in.2[intransitive, transitive] kick something → in American English to join with others in giving or making money, especially in order to help peopleIn eight years, companies have kicked in $300,000 towards community improvements.Sales per employee - one measure of how the staff may or may not be kicking in for a company - rose by 8%. → kick→ See Verb table 