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
Crowding out the understory Researchers think Japanese stiltgrass hitchhiked to the United States in the early 1900s.
—
Sophie Hartley, IndyStar, 28 Aug. 2025
The high school student was hitchhiking for a ride to her ballet class (rather than waiting for the bus) when Kemper picked her up.
—Lynsey Eidell, People.com, 28 Aug. 2025
Without the resources to evacuate, Maddox maneuvered through the storm, sleeping on friends’ couches and swimming, hitchhiking and walking her way out of the city, Haygood wrote.
—Curtis Bunn, NBC news, 27 Aug. 2025
The original film details a three-year surfing tour that Metz took between 1958 and 1961, a journey that involved steamship-hopping, hitchhiking, every other possible manner of transportation across Europe, Australia and Africa.
—Ivan Carter, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for hitchhike
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Sophie Hartley, IndyStar, 28 Aug. 2025
The high school student was hitchhiking for a ride to her ballet class (rather than waiting for the bus) when Kemper picked her up.
—Lynsey Eidell, People.com, 28 Aug. 2025
Without the resources to evacuate, Maddox maneuvered through the storm, sleeping on friends’ couches and swimming, hitchhiking and walking her way out of the city, Haygood wrote.
—Curtis Bunn, NBC news, 27 Aug. 2025
The original film details a three-year surfing tour that Metz took between 1958 and 1961, a journey that involved steamship-hopping, hitchhiking, every other possible manner of transportation across Europe, Australia and Africa.
—Ivan Carter, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Aug. 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 5 Sep. 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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