hike
Americanverb (used without object)
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hikes,
present (3rd person singular)
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hiked,
past participle, past
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hiking
present participle
-
to walk or march a great distance, especially through rural areas, for pleasure, exercise, military training, or the like.
-
to move up or rise, as out of place or position (often followed byup ).
My shirt hikes up if I don't wear a belt.
-
Nautical. to hold oneself outboard on the windward side of a heeling sailboat to reduce the amount of heel.
verb (used with object)
-
hikes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
hiked,
past participle, past
-
hiking
present participle
-
to move, draw, or raise with a jerk (often followed byup ).
to hike up one's socks.
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to increase, often sharply and unexpectedly.
to hike the price of milk.
noun
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hikes
plural
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a long walk or march for recreational activity, military training, or the like.
-
an increase or rise, often sharp and unexpected.
a hike in wages.
idioms
verb
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(intr) to walk a long way, usually for pleasure or exercise, esp in the country
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(usually foll by up) to pull or be pulled; hitch
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(tr) to increase (a price)
noun
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a long walk
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a rise in prices, wages, etc
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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hikesimple
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hikessimple
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have hikedperfect
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has hikedperfect
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am hikingprogressive
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are hikingprogressive
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is hikingprogressive
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have been hikingperfect progressive
-
has been hikingperfect progressive
Past
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hikedsimple
-
had hikedperfect
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was hikingprogressive
-
were hikingprogressive
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had been hikingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of hike
First recorded in 1800–10; perhaps dialectal variant of hitch 1
Explanation
To hike is to walk a long way at a leisurely pace. You might love to hike in the woods on weekends. When you hike, you walk for pleasure, often in a wooded or hilly area. The trip itself is also a hike, whether you hike the Appalachian Trail or climb a local hill. Another meaning of hike is "to increase," as when the library decides to hike the fees for late books. Hike has been around since the 1800's, when it was spelled hyke, but its origin is uncertain. The "walk vigorously" meaning is older than the "raise or increase" meaning.
Vocabulary lists containing hike
Sports and Hobbies
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What Does the Fed's Raising Interest Rates Mean?
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Unit 13
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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:
The central bank delivered its first rate hike since 2023, and the 10-year Treasury yield closed Friday at 4.995%.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 21, 2026
That’s despite the Iran war pushing oil prices above $100 a barrel, a new Federal Reserve’s interest-rate hike and artificial-intelligence executives publicly begging their own industry to slow down.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 19, 2026
Kevin Warsh, who took the helm at the central bank in May, regained badly needed credibility with the hike after a shaky start to his tenure.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 19, 2026
The Bank of Japan’s vote was split, suggesting less support for the hike than had been expected.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
Twenty miles a day, I’d have to hike much faster.
From "Paradise on Fire" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
A move up to the $140-a-barrel threshold can’t be entirely ruled out, he said, nor a more aggressive path of Federal Reserve rate hikes than is currently expected.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 20, 2026
There are hikes and swims in a pristine lake.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 20, 2026
Newcastle-based charity Feeding Britain said hikes in food prices meant "every layer of protection possible" was needed for families on the lowest incomes.
From BBC ● Sep. 20, 2026
Wall Street investors, for instance, are forecasting three more rate hikes between now and April, according to the closely followed FedWatch tool.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 19, 2026
Running more than 2,100 miles along America’s eastern seaboard, through the serene and beckoning Appalachian Mountains, the AT is the granddaddy of long hikes.
From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson
Drax hiked its outlook for 2026 thanks to its 561 million pound acquisition of Bluefield Solar Income Fund which completed on July 31.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 18, 2026
Some firefighters hiked down into the canyon to contain the flames, while others were focused on defending the homes along an adjacent ridgeline, Navarre said.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2026
Commerzbank slashed thousands of jobs and hiked its financial targets in an effort to convince shareholders to back its campaign to remain independent.
From Barron's ● Sep. 14, 2026
The company has already hiked prices on its Mac and iPad lines but has kept its core iPhone offering untouched thus far.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 7, 2026
We had hiked 500 miles, a million and a quarter steps, since setting off from Amicalola.
From "A Walk in the Woods" by Bill Bryson
It comes as major central banks around the world are hiking rates as higher energy prices caused by the Iran war are helping to push up inflation.
From BBC ● Sep. 18, 2026
Yet despite previously supporting lower rates, Warsh’s remarks made clear that even he thought hiking them was the right move.
From Slate ● Sep. 16, 2026
On the Mountain School’s Instagram account, tucked between photos showing students hiking and tending to lambs, is a post highlighting recent attendees’ acceptances to Harvard, Brown, Dartmouth and UC Berkeley, among other colleges.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 14, 2026
When the Fed was hiking several years ago, Grayson Hofferber, founder and president of Millennial Wealth Management, said clients were constantly talking about where they could find the best rates.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 14, 2026
Penelope sounded more stern than usual, for her new hiking boots were beginning to pinch, and the trail had been going uphill for some time now.
From "The Unseen Guest" by Maryrose Wood
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.
