hippie

noun hip·pie \ ˈhi-pē \

variants: or hippy

Updated on: 21 May 2018

plural hippies

: a usually young person who rejects the mores of established society (as by dressing unconventionally or favoring communal living) and advocates a nonviolent ethic; broadly : a long-haired unconventionally dressed young person

—

hippiedom

play \ˈhi-pē-dəm\ noun

—

hippieish

play \ˈhi-pē-ish\ adjective

—

hippieness

or hippiness play \ˈhi-pē-nəs\ noun

See hippie defined for English-language learners

Examples of hippie in a Sentence

She used to be a hippie, but she's fairly conservative now.
The band appeals to a new generation of hippies.

Recent Examples of hippie from the Web

These are not wannabe hippies, but people embracing a modern minimalist lifestyle.

— stephen leahy, National Geographic, "How People Make Only a Jar of Trash a Year," 18 May 2018
Then, in the 1960s and 1970s, American hippies discovered the remote landscape reminiscent of coastal California.

— j.s. marcus, WSJ, "Ibiza: Spain’s Buoyant Seaside Retreat," 16 May 2018
Wolfe, who died Monday at age 88, was known as a dandified doyen of the New Journalism, a reporter who embedded with hippies and race car drivers and astronauts, and later as a grandiose novelist.

— jeet heer, The New Republic, "Tom Wolfe reunited journalism with literature.," 15 May 2018
Over the next few decades, the VW bus became an icon of American culture, with millions of Transporters, Bays, and Syncros hauling everyone from hippies and musicians to hardcore camping families.

— megan barber, Curbed, "Why the Volkswagen California van is the camper we need," 9 May 2018
That means those kind of crusty hippie white girls that are liberals can't do the dreadlocks with the Rasta thing.

— Fox News, "Trump slams 'disgraceful' leak of Mueller questions," 2 May 2018
Hear that and your first thought might be that Auerbach is just an aging hippie.

— chuck yarborough, cleveland.com, "Chuck Auerbach (yep, Dan's dad) brings his own band and sound to Beachland," 30 Apr. 2018
The sound sometimes conjures a fog of bikers, Native Americans, hippies, cowboys and outlaws.

— john adamian, courant.com, "Pick At Least One: A Half-Dozen (Plus) Concerts You Should Know About," 4 May 2018
Harold Bornstein has the visage of an aged hippie and the demeanor of one of history's great curmudgeons.

— aaron blake, Washington Post, "Why the ‘raid’ of Trump’s former doctor isn’t just a funny sideshow," 2 May 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'hippie.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of hippie

⁴hip + -ie

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1965

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

HIPPIE Defined for English Language Learners

hippie

noun

: a usually young person who rejects established social customs (such as by dressing in an unusual way or living in a commune) and who opposes violence and war; especially : a young person of this kind in the 1960s and 1970s

HIPPIE Defined for Kids

hippie

noun hip·pie

variants: or hippy \ˈhi-pē\

plural hippies

: a usually young person who rejects the values and practices of society and opposes violence and war

Learn More about hippie

See words that rhyme with hippie Spanish Central: Translation of hippie Nglish: Translation of hippie for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of hippie for Arabic speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about hippie

Seen and Heard

What made you want to look up hippie? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).

show

hippie

hippiedom

hippieish

hippieness

Examples of hippie in a Sentence

Recent Examples of hippie from the Web

Origin and Etymology of hippie

HIPPIE Defined for English Language Learners

hippie

HIPPIE Defined for Kids

hippie

Learn More about hippie

Seen and Heard

WORD OF THE DAY

arrogate

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Test Your Vocabulary

Words at Play

Noun + Verb Insult Generator

'Judicial' v. 'Judicious': We'll Settle The Case

'Deprived' vs. 'Depraved'

'Folksonomy': Let’s Get Organized

Ask the Editors

Ghost Word

2017 Word of the Year: Behind the Scenes

Literally

Is Singular 'They' a Better Choice?

Word Games

May 2018 Words of the Day Quiz

Words Used by Nabokov Quiz

Name That Thing

SCRABBLE® Sprint

8 Insults Made Up of a Noun and a Verb

'Judicial' v. 'Judicious': We'll Settle The Case

May 2018 Words of the Day Quiz

Trending: Melania Trump Undergoes 'Embolization'

Ghost Word

hippie

hippiedom

hippieish

hippieness

Examples of hippie in a Sentence

Recent Examples of hippie from the Web

Origin and Etymology of hippie

HIPPIE Defined for English Language Learners

hippie

HIPPIE Defined for Kids

hippie

Learn More about hippie

Seen and Heard

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games

8 Insults Made Up of a Noun and a Verb

'Judicial' v. 'Judicious': We'll Settle The Case

May 2018 Words of the Day Quiz

Trending: Melania Trump Undergoes 'Embolization'

Ghost Word