joyride

noun

joy·​ride ˈjȯi-ˌrīd 

1

: a ride taken for pleasure (as in a car or aircraft)

especially : an automobile ride marked by reckless driving (as in a stolen car)

2

: conduct or action resembling a joyride especially in disregard of cost or consequences

joyride intransitive verb

joyrider

ˈjȯi-ˌrī-dər 

noun

joyriding noun

Examples of joyride in a Sentence

Some teenager stole my car and took it for a joyride.

Recent Examples on the Web

The duet gave the impression—as fleeting as that joyride in the fast car—that one great song could bridge America’s divisions. —Michael Schulman, The New Yorker, 9 Dec. 2024

Then a soldier in a battle helmet took the vehicle on a joyride, zipping up and down a sidewalk, at one point slowing down for a professor on a bicycle. —Adam Iscoe, The New Yorker, 25 Nov. 2024

Loading your audio article A wee bit tipsy man on a scooter somehow blew past two checkpoints and roamed around Rikers Island before his nighttime joyride was cut short by security, court records show. —Graham Rayman, New York Daily News, 22 Nov. 2024

Pete Docter recalled stealing one of his co-workers cars and taking it for a joyride. —Bethy Squires, Vulture, 9 Aug. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1909, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

joyride

noun

joy·​ride ˈjoi-ˌrīd 

: a ride taken for pleasure and often marked by reckless driving

joyrider

-ˌrīd-ər 

noun