hijack

verb

ˈhī-ˌjak How to pronounce hijack (audio)
variants also highjack
Definition of hijacknext
as in to commandeer
to take control of (a vehicle) by force some loser tried to hijack the plane with a toy gun

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of hijack How bots and scalpers hijack concert tickets The scale of the bot problem is staggering. — Lauren Schuster, Sacbee.com, 6 July 2026 Kara changes her tune when Krem hijacks Kara’s ship and shoots Krypto with a poison dart. — Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 4 July 2026 For more on how attackers can abuse connected devices, see our report on how the FBI warned that more than 1 million Android devices were hijacked by malware. — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 3 July 2026 There’s a huge difference between tech that is designed to hijack kids’ attention and tech that helps kids build skills, curiosity or confidence. — Mackenzie Price, Forbes.com, 1 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for hijack
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hijack
  1. commandeer
  2. seize
Verb
  • Both the Russian and Chinese governments have been compromising routers for years, sometimes in prolonged tugs-of-war to wrest control of devices the other has already commandeered.
    — Dan Goodin, ArsTechnica, 13 July 2026
  • As the actor who originated the role, Johnson fares a bit better as Maui, smirking and preening and repeatedly tossing Moana off her own boat in attempts to commandeer it for himself.
    — Alison Willmore, Vulture, 8 July 2026
Definition of commandeer
Verb
  • Arthur Kaluma seized his Summer League moment in Las Vegas, scoring 34 points in the Lakers’ 91-70 win over the Dallas Mavericks.
    — Broderick Turner, Los Angeles Times, 12 July 2026
  • And some have responded by seizing the female obsession with looks, already rooted in misogyny, and rebranding it with maximum toxicity—in other words, by becoming looksmaxxers.
    — Jia Tolentino, New Yorker, 11 July 2026
Definition of seize

Browse Nearby Words

highways
hijack
hijacked
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Hijack.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hijack. Accessed 15 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

More from Merriam-Webster on hijack

Nglish: Translation of hijack for Spanish Speakers

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!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat

The Longest Long Words List

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

The Words of the Week - Jul 10
See More

Popular

See More

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

It's a Scorcher! Words for the Summer Heat
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
banana-mirrored
Contradictory Words Quiz Pick out which word means one thing…and the opp...
See All