carjacking
noun
car·jack·ing
ˈkär-ˌja-kiŋ 
: the theft of an automobile from its driver by force or intimidation
In the cities and suburbs, where muggings and carjackings are a daily concern, voters are wondering how many of the nation's 200 million guns are pointed at them.—
Richard Lacayo
Richard Lacayo… Congress made a show of getting tough on crime by making armed carjackings a federal crime.—Janet Novack
Janet Novack
carjack
transitive verb
carjacked; carjacking; carjacks
Several weeks after the shooting, a woman my age was carjacked there.
—Susan Straight
Susan Straight
carjacker
noun
plural carjackers
If you're confronted by a carjacker, be cooperative. The big picture: It's your car versus your life.
—Amy Lumet
Amy Lumet
Examples of carjacking in a Sentence
The police are investigating another carjacking.
Recent Examples on the Web
Detectives say the carjacking was part of a broader crime spree involving multiple suspects who carried out a series of violent early-morning robberies.
—
Caroline Foreback,
CBS News,
25 June 2026
Other calls about armed robberies and carjackings came from Southwest 137th Avenue and Miller Road and a Chevron at Southwest 157th Avenue and Kendall Drive.
—
David J. Neal,
Miami Herald,
19 June 2026
From 2019 to 2025, the robbery rate fell 36% in major cities, carjackings 29%, and domestic violence incidents 19%.
—
The Week Us,
TheWeek,
15 June 2026
Court records show that, on Aug. 25, 2024, officers from the Danbury Police Department arrested six Florida men who were involved in a violent carjacking of a Lamborghini Urus and the kidnapping of two occupants of the vehicle.
—
Staff Report,
Hartford Courant,
9 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for carjacking
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Caroline Foreback,
CBS News,
25 June 2026
Other calls about armed robberies and carjackings came from Southwest 137th Avenue and Miller Road and a Chevron at Southwest 157th Avenue and Kendall Drive.
—
David J. Neal,
Miami Herald,
19 June 2026
From 2019 to 2025, the robbery rate fell 36% in major cities, carjackings 29%, and domestic violence incidents 19%.
—
The Week Us,
TheWeek,
15 June 2026
Court records show that, on Aug. 25, 2024, officers from the Danbury Police Department arrested six Florida men who were involved in a violent carjacking of a Lamborghini Urus and the kidnapping of two occupants of the vehicle.
—
Staff Report,
Hartford Courant,
9 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for carjacking
Cite this Entry
“Carjacking.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/carjacking. Accessed 1 Jul. 2026.
Copy CitationLegal Definition
carjacking
noun
car·jack·ing
ˈkär-ˌja-kiŋ
: theft by force or intimidation of an auto that has a driver or passenger present
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