hitch a ride

1. Also, thumb a ride. Solicit a free ride, especially by hitchhiking. For example, I've no car; can I hitch a ride home with you? or He was hoping to thumb a ride to the stadium. The verb hitch here alludes to walking unevenly, presumably to hop into a car or truck; raising one's thumb is the traditional signal for stopping a car on the road. [First half of 1900s]

Example Sentences

Stremberg, then 24, and his buddy were going to hitch a ride on a log truck bound for San Francisco, catch a flight to Europe, and see the world.

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Amira and her husband finally managed to hitch a ride on a pick-up truck carrying a cargo of vegetables.

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Would she be willing to hitch a ride with a crew that summer?

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It's also used at shipping ports to kill pests before they can hitch a ride to other parts of the world.

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Ultra high-definition cameras from a UK start-up will hitch a ride to the International Space Station later.

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Related Words

• cruise 
• drift 
• drive 
• float 
• go 
• go with 
• guide 
• move 
• sit 
• travel