as in to flee
to hasten away from something dangerous or frightening
when a fight broke out, we hightailed it out of the bar
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hightail (it)
Verb
-
Fellow dictatorships including Russia, China, North Korea, Cuba, and Iran lined up behind Maduro while Gonzalez fled the country during the reign of state terror against dissidents that followed the election.—
Matthew Wills,
JSTOR Daily,
20 Apr. 2025 -
The conflict has forced 12.4 million people to flee their homes and seek safety either elsewhere in Sudan or across the border, including more than half of whom are children (including nearly a third under five).—
Dr. Ewelina U. Ochab,
Forbes.com,
19 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
Instead of an opportunity to gawk and marvel, The Silent Twins presents these two sisters — who retreated inside themselves and spoke only to each other for years — with a sense of complete individuality and autonomy.—
Barry Levitt,
Vulture,
18 Apr. 2025
-
The Yankees’ second baseman then threw his helmet before retreating to the clubhouse.—
Chris Kirschner,
New York Times,
18 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
In the show, Joel flies in like a bat out of hell and violently knocks Seth to the ground before telling him to get the hell out.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes.com,
14 Apr. 2025
-
General Atomics Reapers, which cost around $30 million apiece, can fly at altitudes over 40,000 feet and remain in the air for more than 30 hours.—
Jon Gambrell,
Los Angeles Times,
14 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
Consumers and businesses increasingly expect financial services to be built in, not bolted on.—
Christer Holloman,
Forbes.com,
14 Apr. 2025
-
On Monday, both incoming freshmen recruits bolted as well: Carlsbad High School’s Jake Hall and Uriah Tenette from Prescott, Ariz.—
Mark Zeigler,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
1 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
Similar ads have been run for 9/11 and other times of crises.—
Jamie L. LaReau,
USA Today,
24 Apr. 2025
-
With Everton’s defence dragged to the left, Brooks has space to run to the far post.—
Anantaajith Raghuraman,
New York Times,
23 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
If unable to escape, face the shore and call or wave for help.—
NC Weather Bot,
Charlotte Observer,
15 Apr. 2025
-
Ray reportedly pushed the Uber driver to the ground, and the pair escaped.—
Julia Bonavita,
FOXNews.com,
14 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
Five other victims were wounded by gunfire, while another person was injured while attempting to run away from the shooting, Tallahassee Police Chief Lawrence Revell said.—
Muri Assunção,
New York Daily News,
19 Apr. 2025
-
Metcalf grabbed Anthony and again told him to get from under the team’s tent, then Anthony pulled out a knife and stabbed Metcalf once in the chest before running away, the witness said.—
Mary Walrath-Holdridge,
USA Today,
18 Apr. 2025
Verb
-
Pena ran off three victories after that, beating Milana Dudieva, Jessica Eye and Cat Zingano before Valentina Shevchenko ended her winning streak with a January 2017 armbar submission.—
Trent Reinsmith,
Forbes.com,
20 Apr. 2025
-
McIlroy ran off a streak of pars after that, but as Justin Rose and Ludvig Åberg attempted to make a run up the leaderboard, the 2022 Masters runner-up again put his foot on the gas.—
Jacob Lev,
CNN Money,
13 Apr. 2025
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Cite this Entry
“Hightail (it).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hightail%20%28it%29. Accessed 29 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share