hike

1 of 2

verb

hiked; hiking

intransitive verb

1
a
: to go on a hike
b
: to travel by any means
2
: to rise up
especially : to work upward out of place
skirt had hiked up in back

transitive verb

1
a
: to move, pull, or raise with a sudden motion
hiked himself onto the top bunk
c
: to raise in amount sharply or suddenly
hike rents
2
: to take on a hike
3
: to traverse on a hike
hike a trail
hiker noun

hike

2 of 2

noun

1
: a long walk especially for pleasure or exercise see also take a hike
2
: an increase especially in quantity or amount
a new wage hike
3

Examples of hike in a Sentence

Verb We spent the afternoon hiking around the lake. She hiked 10 miles in the hot desert sun. We hiked some of the shorter trails. Our neighbors spent their vacation hiking the Rockies. The state keeps hiking the tax on cigarettes. There's talk of hiking the eligibility age. I hiked myself onto the ledge. Noun We went for a hike around the lake. The school lost a number of students after the tuition hike.
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
The alpine village, just a 1.5-hour drive from Salzburg, is famous for its leisure activities: skiing and snowboarding in the winter; swimming, biking, and hiking in the summer; and riding the vintage Pinzgauer Lokalbahn train past majestic mountains in any season. Anne Olivia Bauso, Travel + Leisure, 9 Mar. 2024 Vote now on the best burger in metro Phoenix How to hike Big Rock Canyon Trail in Prescott's Granite Dells Big Rock Canyon Trail is east of Watson Lake in the heart of a maze of routes collectively called the Storm Trails. Mare Czinar, The Arizona Republic, 7 Mar. 2024 But Flynn's passion for the banjo, for being around music-minded people, for hiking in Ireland's woods − and crawling out on its precarious cliffs − rekindled the wanderlust in all of us. Lori Nickel, Journal Sentinel, 7 Mar. 2024 Spotify will pass-on the music streaming tax imposed by the French government by hiking its subscription prices in that market. Lars Brandle, Billboard, 7 Mar. 2024 When Heimbach, who frequently hikes the state park and is even a volunteer there, was unavailable by 10 p.m. local time, her family called police, the paper reported. Brian Brant, Peoplemag, 5 Mar. 2024 An unusual legal challenge may upend the future of a Chicago ballot measure that would hike a real estate tax on high-end property sales to fund services for homeless people. Sophia Tareen, Fortune, 4 Mar. 2024 An $8 Tonto Day Pass is required to hike or park at Bartlett Lake. Roger Naylor, The Arizona Republic, 24 Feb. 2024 That’s the message underscored by the astounding liftoff that on February 22, following its big-time earnings beat, boosted its market cap in a single day by 16% or $270 billion, and by mid-morning on February 23, added another 2% to hike its valuation to over $2 trillion. Shawn Tully, Fortune, 24 Feb. 2024
Noun
The four Republicans on the Commission approved the rate hike, while the lone Democrat, Anna Tovar, dissented. The Arizona Republic, 11 Mar. 2024 On some days, hundreds of skiers and snowboarders make the 3-mile hike to the ravine. USA TODAY, 11 Mar. 2024 Rugged night hikes are not suitable for children younger than 10. Karl Schneider, The Indianapolis Star, 7 Mar. 2024 Recession fears have eased, unemployment has been under 4 percent longer than any time since the Vietnam War, stock markets are setting records, wage hikes are surpassing price increases and domestic energy production is higher than ever. Peter Baker, New York Times, 6 Mar. 2024 Add to that epic hikes to nearby Mount Vesuvius and leisurely cruises to the Amalfi Coast, and moving to Naples sounds like an excellent idea. Dobrina Zhekova, Travel + Leisure, 6 Mar. 2024 Homeowners see sizable hikes three years in a row The hit to Michigan property tax bills has been staggering in recent years. Susan Tompor, Detroit Free Press, 6 Mar. 2024 Biden will propose that lawmakers expand the law’s $2,000 annual cap on out-of-pocket drug costs and penalties for drug price hikes to apply to patients with insurance through their jobs, not just Medicare. Rachel Cohrs, STAT, 6 Mar. 2024 The last price hike was increasing the basic plan from $9.99 a month to $11.99 a month in the US in 2023. Paul Tassi, Forbes, 28 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'hike.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

perhaps akin to hitch entry 1

First Known Use

Verb

1809, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a

Noun

1865, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of hike was in 1809

Dictionary Entries Near hike

Cite this Entry

“Hike.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/hike. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

hike

1 of 2 verb
hiked; hiking
1
: to move or raise up
hike rents
2
: to go on a long walk
hiker noun

hike

2 of 2 noun
1
: a long walk especially for pleasure or exercise
2
: an upward movement : rise
a price hike

More from Merriam-Webster on hike

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!