stride
Americanverb (used without object)
-
strides,
present (3rd person singular)
-
strode,
past participle, past
-
stridden,
past participle
-
striding
present participle
-
to walk with long steps, as with vigor, haste, impatience, or arrogance.
-
to take a long step.
to stride across a puddle.
-
to straddle.
verb (used with object)
-
strides,
present (3rd person singular)
-
strode,
past participle, past
-
stridden,
past participle
-
striding
present participle
-
to walk with long steps along, on, through, over, etc..
to stride the deck.
-
to pass over or across in one long step.
to stride a ditch.
-
to straddle.
noun
-
strides
plural
-
a striding manner or a striding gait.
-
a long step in walking.
-
(in animal locomotion) the act of progressive movement completed when all the feet are returned to the same relative position as at the beginning.
-
the distance covered by such a movement.
He was walking a stride or two ahead of the others.
-
a regular or steady course, pace, etc.
-
a step forward in development or progress.
rapid strides in mastering algebra.
- Synonyms:
- improvement, headway, progress, development, advancement
-
Australian Informal. strides, trousers.
idioms
-
hit one's stride,
-
to achieve a regular or steady pace or course.
-
to reach the point or level at which one functions most competently and consistently.
The quarterback didn't hit his stride until the second half of the game.
-
-
take in stride, to deal with calmly; cope with successfully.
She was able to take her sudden rise to fame in stride.
noun
-
a long step or pace
-
the space measured by such a step
-
a striding gait
-
an act of forward movement by an animal, completed when the legs have returned to their initial relative positions
-
progress or development (esp in the phrase make rapid strides )
-
a regular pace or rate of progress
to get into one's stride
to be put off one's stride
-
rowing the distance covered between strokes
-
Also called: stride piano. jazz a piano style characterized by single bass notes on the first and third beats and chords on the second and fourth
-
informal (plural) men's trousers
-
to do something without difficulty or effort
verb
-
(intr) to walk with long regular or measured paces, as in haste, etc
-
(tr) to cover or traverse by striding
he strode thirty miles
-
to cross (over a space, obstacle, etc) with a stride
-
(intr) rowing to achieve the desired rhythm in a racing shell
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
stridesimple
-
stridessimple
-
have striddenperfect
-
have strodeperfect
-
has striddenperfect
-
has strodeperfect
-
am stridingprogressive
-
are stridingprogressive
-
is stridingprogressive
-
have been stridingperfect progressive
-
has been stridingperfect progressive
Past
-
strodesimple
-
had striddenperfect
-
had strodeperfect
-
was stridingprogressive
-
were stridingprogressive
-
had been stridingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of stride
First recorded before 900; (verb) Middle English striden, Old English strīdan; cognate with Dutch strijden, Low German strīden “to stride”; (noun) Middle English stride, derivative of the verb; akin to straddle
Explanation
The noun stride means "significant progress." You might make a huge stride towards making peace with the rival school by hosting a block party and inviting their students. The noun stride also means "a step made while running or walking." If you are bored, you can count your strides between home and the bus stop. As a verb, stride means "to walk or run by taking long steps." Elite runners stride, making it look easy. But even if you are a slow jogger, don't give up — you make great strides to improve your health when you exercise regularly.
Vocabulary lists containing stride
"Of Mice and Men"
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
100 Great Words from "Fahrenheit 451" -- Part I Vocabulary
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Beowulf vocabulary
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Dean “had found this flow as a performer, unleashed herself. To see your friend and business partner hit their stride after years of work was really special.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026
But her open-hearted grace and ability to take such slights in stride resonated with everyday folks otherwise overlooked by upper-crust tastemakers.
From Salon ● Aug. 26, 2026
Outwardly at least, nothing knocks him out of his stride.
From BBC ● Aug. 17, 2026
When there are unknowns about how an industry will metabolize certain technological changes, they want to hire someone who bounces back from mistakes and takes setbacks in stride.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 13, 2026
I stride past him and up the steps.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
"We've made great strides since 2014, but observations are still limited," he said.
From BBC ● Aug. 28, 2026
She told broadcaster ABC the sport had made strides in dealing with issues like sexism and racism in recent years, but added:
From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026
“He’s made tremendous strides this offseason. He’s going to get turned loose.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 16, 2026
As a result, their strides were shorter, and their walking speeds were slower.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 16, 2026
The man stopped two strides ahead of them and turned to look at them all.
From "Homecoming" by Cynthia Voigt
“It’s embarrassing if you don’t come with one,” Kirsty Downes, 35, said as several other Pitbull lookalikes strode through Hyde Park on the way to the show.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 22, 2026
Outreach workers with ID lanyards strode through the trash-strewn landscape like lifeguards working against endless tides of fresh emergencies.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 8, 2026
"I'm the boss," Trump said as he strode in to the morning session of the last day, with the other leaders already in their seats.
From Barron's ● Jun. 17, 2026
After summoning the White House press pool, Trump strode to a podium bearing the presidential seal and, unprompted, declared that the “lies” linking her to Jeffrey Epstein had to end.
From Salon ● Apr. 13, 2026
Without even thinking, I stepped onto the long wooden walkway and slowly strode toward the whistling.
From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan
And it is into this perceived vacuum that Andy Burnham has stridden, again, to the intense irritation of Downing Street and plenty of Labour MPs.
From BBC ● Sep. 26, 2025
He had stridden through the deep woods with no thought of danger; he concentrated only on finding the pair that he had seen so close to death.
From "Messenger" by Lois Lowry
He had never scrupled to thrust from his path whoever or whatever stood in his way, and had stridden on without a backward glance.
From The Bell in the Fog and Other Stories by Gertrude Franklin Horn Atherton
On Basil's lips quivered a word, a question, but before it could be uttered the soldier had stridden away, his casque gleaming in the sun, and his sword clanking beside him.
From Veranilda by George Gissing
Then, half-mad with grief, the old man had flung the reins across the steaming beast, and without a word of explanation had stridden away in the direction of Sallertaine.
From Autumn Glory The Toilers of the Field by Ren? Bazin
Its red-white-and-blue website shows the Statue of Liberty and a person wearing a cowboy hat striding with a partner through amber waves of grain.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
Rangzen's livestream of his death shows a heavy-set man striding across a street in a traditional "chuba" robe and planting a Tibetan flag outside the UN.
From Barron's ● Aug. 7, 2026
One imagines not the ghost of Cathy or Heathcliff, but a trio of women, very much alive and striding through the heather, their minds alight with the stories they would tell, set among similar terrain.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 14, 2026
Co-written by actual opera singer Vesna Aćimović, it's all about women breaking free of gender stereotypes and striding towards a new dawn.
From BBC ● May 8, 2026
Mr. Yardley has spotted us and is striding over.
From "How to Disappear Completely" by Ali Standish
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
