hightailing (it)

verb

present participle of hightail (it)
as in fleeing
to hasten away from something dangerous or frightening when a fight broke out, we hightailed it out of the bar

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for hightailing (it)
  1. fleeing
  2. retreating
  3. flying
  4. bolting
  5. running away
  6. running off
  7. running
  8. bugging out
Verb
  • Raney Aronson-Rath A chronicle of one Syrian daughter’s journey in fleeing war and seeking refuge in Germany, and how over ten years, new pressures and opportunities present themselves.
    — Matthew Carey, Deadline, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Police say the father of one of the children confronted the adult victim and shot her before fleeing the scene.
    — DeJanay Booth-Singleton, CBS News, 14 Oct. 2026
Definition of fleeing
Verb
  • The pope paused for a moment and waved to the crowd before retreating into his apartment in the Apostolic Palace.
    — Colleen Barry, Chicago Tribune, 18 Oct. 2026
  • In a world riven by democratic backsliding and polluted with AI slop, there’s something seductive about the idea of retreating to a wild, unnavigable place where no one can follow you—because you’ll be submerged up to your eyeballs.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of retreating
Verb
  • Almost all of the birds on Palmyra Atoll rely on the ocean, flying out to sea daily to feed on fish or squid, bringing some back for their young.
    — Lauren Sommer, NPR, 13 Oct. 2026
  • Six Flags Great Adventure via Facebook While riding Nitro, riders can see the Philadelphia skyline for a glimpse before flying down a 215-foot drop.
    — Nikki DeMentri, CBS News, 13 Oct. 2026
Definition of flying
Verb
  • Dyson built the CameraJet around 16 million lines of code and a model trained on 470,000 dental images, bolting a camera, pump, fluid system and software onto a device people have historically cleaned with nylon bristles.
    — Ryan Brennan, Charlotte Observer, 6 Oct. 2026
  • Now every SaaS company that spent the last three years bolting AI features onto legacy infrastructure just got very expensive news.
    — Rafael Flores, Forbes.com, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of bolting
Verb
  • The video shows a black SUV speeding over a median and driving toward a man who is running away.
    — Lekan Oyekanmi, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Walker arrives at the scene and notices a man running away with a gun in hand.
    — Armando Tinoco, Deadline, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of running away
Verb
  • The Strawther familiar to Denver is the free-swinging gunner, trailing the play in transition to hunt 3s or running off weak-side screens or waiting for the ball in the corner.
    — Bennett Durando, Denver Post, 7 Oct. 2026
  • Images released by police showed one person ripping down the flag and then another person running off with the flag.
    — Nathan Pilling, Kansas City Star, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of running off
Verb
  • On the other, evidence suggests this pair of habitual time-wasters were commonly found on the floor, running laughter through a Yamaha SPX90 effects processor for kicks and strumming the same note for 40-odd minutes.
    — Gabriel Szatan, Pitchfork, 18 Oct. 2026
  • Albert Ramdin, secretary general of the Organization of American States, also has said that candidates with criminal ties should be barred from running.
    — Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of running
Verb
  • There’s a wonderful small moment midway through the season where Reilly’s lightly bugging out in his dingy apartment, shaking out his limbs at sharp, insectile angles to get comfortable.
    — Nicholas Quah, Vulture, 26 May 2026
  • Her baby's father answered the door with his eyes bugging out, and Frierson barged in to find two other guys, needles, spoons and powder on the table.
    — Brad Schmitt, The Tennessean, 21 Aug. 2025
Definition of bugging out
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.

Browse Nearby Words

hightailed (it)
hightailing (it)
hightail (it)
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Cite this Entry

“Hightailing (it).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hightailing%20%28it%29. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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