hitchhike
verb
hitch·hike
ˈhich-ˌhīk 
hitchhiked; hitchhiking; hitchhikes
1
: to travel by securing free rides from passing vehicles
2
: to be carried or transported by chance or unintentionally
destructive insects hitchhiking on ships
: to solicit and obtain (a free ride) especially in a passing vehicle
hitchhiker
noun
Examples of hitchhike in a Sentence
Her car broke down, so she had to hitchhike back home.
He hitchhiked his way across the country last summer.
Recent Examples on the Web
Prosecutors said Grissom, an Arkansas long-haul truck driver who had a lengthy criminal record, picked up Johns, who was hitchhiking, on his way to Oklahoma City to apply for a job.
—
arkansasonline.com, 21 Mar. 2025
Insects often hitchhike on products, people, and plant material, usually without our being aware of it, says Kathryn Bronsky, national policy manager with the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
—Erica Browne Grivas, Better Homes & Gardens, 12 Mar. 2025
The Charlotte Observer last reported on Cornett’s disappearance in 1992, when police searched a South Carolina well after a tip from a teenager who once hitchhiked with Bell in 1984.
—Julia Coin, Charlotte Observer, 25 Feb. 2025
What was a thin, simple premise in King’s novella — widely considered the world’s first e-book, by the way, in 2000 — is extended to little effect in this drama about a man who tries to kill himself, then hitchhikes across the country to visit his dying mother.
—Tim Grierson, Vulture, 21 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hitchhike
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arkansasonline.com, 21 Mar. 2025
Insects often hitchhike on products, people, and plant material, usually without our being aware of it, says Kathryn Bronsky, national policy manager with the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
—Erica Browne Grivas, Better Homes & Gardens, 12 Mar. 2025
The Charlotte Observer last reported on Cornett’s disappearance in 1992, when police searched a South Carolina well after a tip from a teenager who once hitchhiked with Bell in 1984.
—Julia Coin, Charlotte Observer, 25 Feb. 2025
What was a thin, simple premise in King’s novella — widely considered the world’s first e-book, by the way, in 2000 — is extended to little effect in this drama about a man who tries to kill himself, then hitchhikes across the country to visit his dying mother.
—Tim Grierson, Vulture, 21 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hitchhike
Cite this Entry
“Hitchhike.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hitchhike. Accessed 31 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
hitchhike
verb
hitch·hike
ˈhich-ˌhīk
: to travel by securing free rides from passing vehicles
hitchhiker
noun
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